Detroit Mural Censored

In 1997, artist Edward Stross painted a mural on the outside of his Roseville Detroit studio -a reworking of Michelangelo's, Creation of Man. A female figure with bare breasts is portrayed in Stross's Sistine Chapel-modeled artwork. Placed next to the Michelangelo motif the artist painted a patriotic character he calls "The Spirit of Roseville", a Lady Liberty-like figure in red who carries Old Glory. Also included in the mural is the word, "love". Visionless blockheads posing as city officials have attacked the mural for violating the "sign ordinance" law. This past Thursday, a District Court Judge ordered the muralist to serve 90 days in jail, two years probation, and pay a $500 fine. The Judge also ruled that the artist must "tastefully" cover the nude before reporting to the County Jail on Feb. 22nd. On Monday the artist was joined by supporters, and in a solemn ceremony a black cloth was adhered to the offending breasts. Stross said, "I'm using a black cloth because black is the color of mourning." He also expressed hope that his First Amendment rights would be upheld in court and that the black cloth would eventually be removed. Stross then painted a red tear in the eye of his Spirit of Roseville figure, saying "She has been punched in the eye." The ACLU has filed a motion to keep the artist out of jail, but the situation doesn’t look good. You can see Stross's mural and read more about the controversy at The Detroit News.