Talk:Hans Bellmer

WikiProject class rating
This article was automatically assessed because at least one article was rated and this bot brought all the other ratings up to at least that level. BetacommandBot 03:37, 27 August 2007 (UTC)

Politics and Anti-Fascism
It's controversial to say that Bellmer's work was anti-Nazi. Certainly the Nazis opposed his work and considered it degenerate, but his work was personal and not in response to Nazism nor consciously an "Anti-Nazi" political statement. Gymnophoria (talk) 13:17, 16 February 2010 (UTC)
 * Right now the only source for that segment says: "Hans Bellmer is the best known of the German doll makers: His dolls expressed a protest against the ideal of the Nazi human ideal." But that doesn't really support all the text as it stands at the moment. (Nor does a brief mention from a newspaper seem like the strongest source in this context.) Using a better source that has more than two sentences to say about Bellmer in relation to the Nazis it should be possible to write something more nuanced (and more accurate.) Siawase (talk) 14:19, 16 February 2010 (UTC)

Controversy
I would like to object to the "Controversy" section. Both sources listed are websites for far right anti muslim groups with an obvious agenda, and so should not be considered reliable sources. On the events of the incident of Whitechapel, the official reason for the pictures being removed was space restrictions. It is said (ie rumoured) that Agnès de la Baumelle claimed that the Whitechapel Gallery Director, Iwona Blazwick, described the works in question as "sulphurous" and had declared that they would be dangerous to exhibit not just because of their "paedophile" overtones but also because the area of Whitechapel has a large Muslim population.

Copies of the official statements can be found here http://robberbridegroom.blogspot.co.uk/2006/10/more-on-bellmer-censorship-story.html

Since the reason given in the current Wiki article can not be substantiated by an impartial source, I suggest using the official reason for why certain pictures weren't included. However, this would remove the relevancy to "Controversy" and so perhaps the section should be removed altogether?

Copy of the Statements :

STATEMENT FROM THE WHITECHAPEL GALLERY, 5 October 2006

"Over 200 works by the artist Hans Bellmer are currently displayed at the Whitechapel Gallery, London in an exhibition organised by the Centre Pompidou, Musee National d’Art Moderne, Paris. Though smaller than the original Paris exhibition due to the Whitechapel’s smaller exhibition spaces, the works displayed in London were selected in close consultation with the exhibition's curators Agnes de la Beaumelle and Alain Sayag and with the Whitechapel’s curator Anthony Spira. "The exhibition continues at the Whitechapel Gallery until 19 November 2006."

STATEMENT FROM THE CENTRE POMPIDOU, 7 October 2006

"Centre Pompidou has today issued a statement in response to articles that have appeared with regard to the Hans Bellmer exhibition at the Whitechapel Art Gallery in London. The exhibition was shown at Centre Pompidou from 1 March to 22 May 2006. "Centre Pompidou confirms that, as a result of the smaller space available for the exhibition at the Whitechapel Art Gallery, the whole selection of works displayed at the institution in Paris could not be shown in London. The Bellmer works that are not included in the display in London are no more or less shocking for certain visitors than those that are in the show. "For further information, please contact Roya Nasser, Director of Communications, Centre Pompdiou

Buddha83 (talk) 16:36, 21 May 2012 (UTC)

You make a good point. The problem is that the sources are using a non-english version of the Le Monde article. While it is certainly arguable that these are still only rumored, the impartiality concern can be done away by changing the citation. the original article is available here: http://www.lemonde.fr/cgi-bin/ACHATS/acheter.cgi?offre=ARCHIVES&type_item=ART_ARCH_30J&objet_id=960979&xtmc=hans_bellmer_whitechapel&xtcr=1

I think that it would be equally problematic to accept the official statements at face value, especially among the other source.

I think the best solution would be to change the citation to the original Le Monde article from which all others are derived and mention the official rebuttal. Something like

In 2006, the Whitechapel Gallery in London removed 12 works by Hans Bellmer from an exhibition, for fear that the sexual overtones would be offensive to the neighborhood's Muslim population. Despite these claims, both the Whitechapel Gallery and the Pompidou asserted that the removal of the works was based on spatial limitations.

MNicolou (talk) 02:28, 24 May 2012 (UTC)

Link #1 in references sends users to wrong website? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.22.33.247 (talk) 06:38, 1 June 2013 (UTC)

Date of death
The article lists both February 23 and 24 as the day of his death, the one reference is to an offline source. A quick search didn't turn up any online references that don't appear to lead back to WP. Rwessel (talk) 07:34, 13 March 2016 (UTC)

Pop Culture Reference In Music
Musician Neil Innes, name checks “The Peppermint Tower in Praise of Greedy Little Girls”, in his song “Hey Mister!”. Performed by The Rutles on their “Archeology” album. 75.106.32.81 (talk) 20:58, 5 October 2023 (UTC)