DDA Gallery Archive

  • Susan Silas

    Medium: Archival inkjet print on Hahnemühle photo rag

    Censored by: Instagram

    Date of censorship: August 2019

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?
    Yes, I offended community standards.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?
    I didn’t appeal.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? This was on the occasion of the publication of a catalogue for an exhibition in Germany of a large body of images from my series: love in the ruins; sex over 50. I wanted to create awareness about the catalogue publication.

    Comments:
    Overall I have found that I am less able than friends to share work through Instagram because it is taken down so quickly. I have had images of literal fornication survive because they may not have looked as explicit and because my nipples were not visible.

    Artist’s website: susansilas.com

    Artist’s Instagram: @susansilas

  • Gala Garrido

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Facebook (Meta)

    Date of censorship: 09/09/2021

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?: Yes, your post goes against our community guidelines.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: Yes, but same message.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?: They took the post down and suspended me for a few days. Frustration, I can’t show my work on any platform other than my website.

    Comments: I am aware that I am violating community policy, but my content is art, and I have seen really violent and offensive content that is not penalized. Once I uploaded an image on instagram of a performance I did where there were two women kissing; the shot was both their faces – it was taken down. I have many people who denounce me and when people report your work, it is much more likely that it will be taken down. My theory is that the other violent work mentioned above is just not reported by anyone, so it stays up.

    Artist’s website: galagalo.com

    Artist’s Instagram: @galagalo

  • Daniel Hobbs

    Medium: Digital artist - 3D

    Censored by: Instagram

    Reason given:
    Adult content showing full nudity (it doesn't)

    What date were you censored?: 11/09/2021

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?:
    Against community guidelines, showing pornographic imagery

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    I appealed 3 times and also to a committee, every repeal was rejected.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details.:
    One of more popular pieces, sadly Instagram seems to target my work which shows mixed race couples. I have other work which is more on show

    Artist Website: http://obbz.art

    Artist Instagram: @obbzart

    Comments:
    Was a piece posted over a year ago. Seems to be targeted removals that happen from time to time randomly. However some are instant. Seems to be more common when showing non white models.

  • Alice Farrington

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?:
    nudity and sexual activity

    What date were you censored?: 1/12/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    No

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.:
    The photograph was posted to sell within a group print sale - the image had to then be reposted with ridiculous censoring which ruined the entire photograph. Not being able to share a photograph of a bum, simply a nude bum, was disturbingly controlling on a seemingly liberal platform. As many of my images have nudity I was left feeling stifled in my artistic expression and misunderstood as the image was not sexual in its nature- it is a photograph about chosen family, sisterhood, intimacy within friendship.

    Please write additional comments:
    I wonder where the best place to share photography with nudity is? It certainly doesn’t seem to be instagram. How can we have such explicit imagery of violence and human pain in the news and yet a nude body is off limits. I was glad to find your community out here, i agree - don’t delete art.


    Your Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/albaroofaroo/?hl=en

  • Phil Pool

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Facebook

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?:
    Nudity or sexual activity

    What date were you censored?: 10/17/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    Yes, and the appeal was rejected.

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.:
    Yes, it's an image being used to promote my art work and a project to challenge stereotypes about age and bodies. My account has been blocked for 24 hours and I expect it'll be blocked again as it's being blocked for images that don't break its rules...

    Please write additional comments:
    The image was censored deliberately (by me) to avoid being caught by their rules - and they blocked it any way.

    Your website: http://starshumansnests.com

  • Carolee Schneeman


    Medium: Photograph

    Censored by: Facebook

    When?: N/A

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?:
    The work violated community guidelines on photographic nudity.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    No.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details.:
    The artist is dead and, though censorship affected her throughout her life, now it only affects her audiences.

    Comments:
    Images from Carolee Schneemann’s iconic 1963 performance, Eye Body: 36 Transformative Actions for Camera, were posted by friends and fans on Facebook in her memory after the artist’s death on March 6, 2019. The work was radical in the 1960s, but Schneemann has been recognized since as one of the leading artists of our times. The work has been shown in the world’s leading museums. Nevertheless, it is still taboo on social media in 2020.

    Artist’s Website: caroleeschneemann.com

  • Andy Greenaway

    Medium: Acryllic

    Censored By: Instagram

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?:
    I tried to promote a post and they rejected it. Said the post was showing too much skin, despite the fact no sensitive parts were shown in the painting. Quite ridiculous.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    Yes, but I didn’t

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?:
    I’m trying to build an audience for my art and now realize it is going to be difficult via social media.

    Comments:
    I think this movement is great. The best art in the world is irreverent. And nude paintings have been the rockbed of progressive art throughout the centuries. Censoring in this day in age is not only ridiculous, it’s outrageous.

    Artist Instagram: @andygreenaway

  • Ben Franke

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Reason given: Sexual content - against guidelines

    What date were you censored?: 05/01/2021

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?:
    Against community guidelines

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    I appealed, they made the same decision the second time

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details.:
    I curate my art very specifically and I have to rethink my next post and essentially discard this image that I spend quite a lot of time, money, and effort to capture.

    Artist Website: http://soulcraftphotography.com

    Artist Instagram: @soul.craft

    Comments:
    Don’t delete art.

  • Loz City

    Medium: OTC Aspirin cast in resin

    Censorship by: Instagram

    Date of censorship: May 2020

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?:
    Yes – Removed for “Sale of illegal or regulated goods”

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    No

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?:
    Due to multiple “offenses,” Instagram informed me that my profile is “at-risk” of being deleted. This makes me incredibly anxious, because Instagram is my primary marketing and networking platform – especially in quarantine.

    Comments:
    Unfortunately, this is not the first time my artwork has been censored on social media. I was temporarily banned on TikTok for videos of my artwork after 5 days of making an account. Ironically, my art is meant to bring light to the exact issues that I’m being repeatedly reported for; namely, the hypocritical drug and medicine culture we live in, which is so heavily influenced by money, media, and corporations.

    Artist’s website: LozCity.com

    Artist’s Instagram: @LozCity

  • Rick Castro

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Meta

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?:
    Claimed "against community standards" violation of nudity or sexual activity~ even though there is none

    What date were you censored?: 2/10/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    I appealed explaining it was editorial for Christian Dior Homme- one of the most mainstream clothing brands published in mainstream publications worldwide. and was still removed.

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.:
    Meta has been prosecuting my art since 2019~ when they banned my FB account for 60 days. Thus making it impossible to publicize my exhibitions even though links to interviews were in mainstream press like Advocate and Los Angeles Weekly. After direct contact by LA weekly on my behalf, FB apologized to Weekly, (not me) and reinstated my account. Since then I've been on a watch list and get censored and shadow banned on a regular basis. Also my stories feature was blocked without any notification or reason, and my tag adding button was deactivated. This has greatly effected my livelihood as an artist. I rely on social media for a good percentage of direct to customer sales.

    Please write additional comments:
    Meta disproportionately targets queer content~ especially homoerotic content. they never remove images by Lizzo or Megan Thee Stallion no matter how erotic~ but will remove the same idea of an image if the subject is two men. Homoerotic art is over policed by Meta. My image was fully clothed single image. after all the editorial is for a clothing brand!

    Your Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/castrrick

  • Amanda Del Rae

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?:
    Yes for “violating community guidelines”

    What date were you censored?: 4/8/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    No option to appeal

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.:
    Emotional distress and anxiety because there is no nudity in these images.

    Please write additional comments:
    Instagram removed this post and wouldn't let me appeal the removal. How tf is this violating community guidelines?? There's entirely sexually explicit accounts targeting CHILDREN on this app but a lil match is crossing the line? Make it make sense!

    Your Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/amanda.delrae

  • Justin Eldridge

    Medium: Collage

    Censored by: Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?:
    Yes. “Your post goes against our guidelines on nudity.”

    What date were you censored?: 4/15/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    Yes, I was given a review request. I did not bother to submit seeing as how I’m banned from promoting my account already and feel that Instagram is after me already. Did not want to have them even further into my account.

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.:
    The consequence for me was having to go back and censor nipples and repost it out of the order in which I was creating my post.

    Please write additional comments:
    They can flag whatever they want, but I meet the minimal requirements for the guidelines!

    Your Instagram: http://Instagram.com/_xeldridgex_

    Your Twitter: http://Twitter.com/xeldridgex

  • Betty Tompkins

    Medium: Acrylic on canvas

    Censored by: Instagram

    Date of censorship: April 2019

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?:
    No.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    No. They ignored me and the hundreds of people who wrote to them in support of my account and work.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?:
    I had a 3 day anxiety attack.

    Artist Instagram: @bettytompkinsart

  • Michael Angle Oh

    Medium: Video

    Censored by: Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?: Three videos have been blocket in some countries

    What date were you censored?: 9/22/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: No

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.: Anxiety Business lost Free speech lost

    Please write additional comments: I believe as an artist that I am on the right track with what I am creating, especially when I am getting banned from social media. It means I am ON something good, for humanity, our free speech. [Our human rights to make a better world. But It definitely makes it harder to get out >> with social media banning my Art In this case I am presenting videos on Instagram [I AM A REBEL EMPRESS] and quick like that >> Those videos get banned in “some countries”

    Your website:

    Your Instagram: http://Instagram/michael_angle_oh

  • Juliana Maar

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: instagram

    When?: April 2018

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?:
    There was notification but most of the time you can hardly see what photo it is and the reason was it went against community guidelines.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    Can’t recall in particular but when there’s the opportunity to do so it always comes back with the same answer -"it violates community guidelines”. I've never won an appeal, ever.

    Other comments:
    In order to cope with the frustration and the hypocrisy of double standards i had to post the photos already censored, trying to do so in the less invasive possible so there’s still dignity towards the work - the white strips are visible under the scribble in this image. But it’s always unpredictable, sometimes photos are still banned, while others I find more edgy regards community guideline stay. In this photo I vented my frustration and this is how the image is seen on Instagram now.

    Website: http://cargocollective.com/julianamaar

    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juliana.maar/

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julianamaar

  • AdeY

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Date of censorship: September, 2018

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?:
    Yes I received a notification stating that the content was removed for displaying sexual activity.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    There was no opportunity to appeal!

    What, if any, are the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details?:
    Between 2017 and 2019 my Instagram account was removed and reinstated 9 times alongside many images that were removed from he platform permanently.

    Comments:
    My letter to Instagram – adey.co/dear-instagram

    I thought you would like these posts from my show The Censored Exhibition at The Finnish Museum of Photography which had interactive elements in protest to social media censorship.

    instagram.com/p/CFzo80aHD5Z/?utm_medium=copy_link

    instagram.com/p/CEo-42knvma/?utm_medium=copy_link

    instagram.com/p/CGFrE6Xnt_M/?utm_medium=copy_link

    Artist Website: adey.co

    Artist Instagram: @__adey__

  • Ken Gruenholtz

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Date of censorship: April 2019

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?:
    Yes, I was advised that the image violated Instagram’s Community Standards regarding Nudity and Sexually Suggestive material.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    Yes, I appealed and the appeal was denied.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?:
    At the time, the focus of my work was photographing gay couples. Because of this deletion and other deletions I had to stop posting most of my couples work because my account was identified as vulnerable to deletion by Instagram. As a result, couples stopped contacting me about being photographed and this effectively prevented me from continuing this series.

    Comments:
    What is most frustrating here is that the image does not violate any Community Guidelines that I am aware of. The models are not nude. There is no pubic hair, no penis and no close-up of a butt. And, there is no sexual activity or suggestive sexual activity. This is simply an image of a real-life couple hanging out after a gym workout.

    Much of my Couples work is inspired by the Berlin Memorial which acknowledges the discrimination and violence gay men endured during WWII. I discovered the memorial just four years ago during a visit to Berlin. It consists of a small black shack across the street from the Holocaust Memorial. The shack has only one window and when you look through it, there’s a one-minute black and white loop of two attractive young men, fully clothed, caressing and kissing one another in an affectionate manner. For me, the memorial was incredibly moving—why would anyone want to harm something so beautiful?

    After seeing the memorial, I decided to create a COUPLES series that would likewise endeavor to present positive images of gay men together. However, the Instagram algorithm, by deleting this image and other positive images of men together, is now preventing me from sharing my COUPLES work and sharing the positive message of the Berlin memorial.

    Artist Website: www.gruenholtz.com

    Artist Instagram: @gruenholtz @gruenholtzvintage

  • Chiara No

    Medium: Video designed for the Instagram platform

    Censored by: Instagram

    Date of censorship: June 2020

    Was there notification of removal? If so was a reason given?
    Nudity or sexual activity.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?
    Yes. My account was permanently deactivated once and deactivated twice more. With my first account I hadn’t recorded the harassment, so nothing came of the appeal. After that, I recorded everything. IG’s appeal form is laughable because you can’t upload screen-grabs, so I wrote out all the harassment, threats and handles.

    What was the response?
    At first nothing, so I repeated it all on IG’s FAQs. Both times, after this bombardment, IG reinstated my account: my content was intact, all harassing DMs and most of their accounts deleted.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?
    My first deactivation was emotionally hard. I lost thousands of followers, two years’ worth of carefully written posts and a large portion of images and videos.

    Comments:
    Before my first post was deleted, I used to post a few funny pictures. In July 2016, I posted a photo of me lifting my dress revealing “granny” underwear. It was reported almost instantly for “nudity and pornography.” Since then, I have mainly been testing the boundaries of IG’s Community Guidelines and at times, usually in frustration, pointing out their hypocrisies and biases.

    Artist website: www.chiara-no.com

    Artist Instagram: @chiara_no_

  • Cris Miranda

    Medium: Analogue photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Reason given: Post removed for nudity or sexual activity

    What date were you censored?: 01/18/2021

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?: "Against community guidelines on nudity or sexual activity."

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: I did appeal but after a few months they got back to me saying there was a risk of deleting my account due to the same reasons.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details.:

    Since then everything I post seems to reach less than 20% of my followers and therefore I believe I've shadow banned. I also had a loss of followers and some bots to deal with. It's been impossible to grow or expose my work.

    Artist Instagram: @cris35mm

  • Nadine Robbins

    Medium: Oil painting and photography

    Censorship by: Instagram, Facebook, Patreon, Tumblr

    Date of censorship: A better part of 2019 although it began in 2018

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?: Against the community guidleines about nudity, cropping of images in an unflattering manner, political page

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: I appealed every time. 95% of the time my posts did not get reinstated.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?: Lost followers and opportunites at a critical time in my career. I believe I lost several opportunities to sell art and leverage art and museum shows.

    Artist’s website: www.nadinerobbinsart.com

    Artist’s Instagram: @nadinerobbinsartist

  • Udæntro

    Medium: Photography (self-portraiture)

    Censored by: Instagram

    Date of censorship: May 2019 to March 2020

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?: Violation of community guidelines about nudity and sexual activity

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: Yes, but they just confirmed that my content violated their guidelines

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?: I had 3 accounts removed (@tropocorpo, @tropo.corpo, @_tropocorpo) from the platform due to “violation of community guidelines about nudity and sexuality”, it made me feel completely powerless and helpless about sharing my artwork out there, I almost gave it up.

    Comments: Whatever I did to conform to the guidelines – applying squares, blur or pixelation over the genitalia – my work was always removed. At first I received notifications, but then content just started to vanish without trace. After 3 account deletions, I hired a lawyer to challenge the nebulous, arbitrary and unequal censorship that leaves artists of this kind of work powerless and silenced. Meanwhile, I’m making a fourth attempt to be present on Instagram, documenting this censorship.

    Artist’s website: https://udaentro.com/

    Artist’s Twitter: @udaentrooes

  • Savannah Spirit

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Reason given Goes Against Community Guidelines on sexual activity

    What date were you censored? 09/01/2021 and 02/18/2022

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given? Yes, against community guidelines and sexual solicitation

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response? Yes, I appealed, however they denied the appeal. They said, "post removed for sexual activity"

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details. Emotional distress, loss of income and limited reach of my followers. My name as a hashtag #savannahspirit is also permanently shadowbanned.

    Other Comments: Unfortunately, Instagram has done hardly anything to change their policies to accept the art nude in photography on their platforms. It's 2021. This should not be an issue any more. The problem is Instargram sexualizes the body just by way of using censorship as a form of denegrating the female form when it was never intended to be sexualized in the first place. C'mon instagram, you can program your AI to be smarter than this and use the platform to help artists, not take away their livelihoods.

    Artist Website www.savannahspirit.photography

    Artist Instagram @savannah.spirit_

  • Daniel Maidman

    Medium: Drawing

    Censored By: Instagram

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given? Yes, and yes – nudity. Community standards/nudity.

    What date were you censored? Jan 2021

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response? No; the standard appeal button did not appear on the original post or a repost.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Unclear. I was already shadowbanned.

    Comments This was a startling one – it was A. a drawing and B. so heavily patterned as to be difficult to identify anyway. However, Savannah Spirit was tagged in it (it was a drawing based on one of her photographs), and my posts linked to her are frequently deleted.

    Artist Website: danielmaidman.com

    Artist Instagram: @danielmaidman

  • Paolo Pesce

    Medium Film photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Reason given: Violating the community guidelines on nudity.

    What date were you censored?: 02/16/2021

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?: Yes, because it went against the community guidelines on nudity.

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: At that time I didn't know I could appeal.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details.: I cropped the photo and uploaded it again.

    Artist Instagram @pexepix

  • Isabel Rodriguez Ramos

    Medium: Photography and video art

    Censored by: Instagram

    Reason given: Against the community guidelines.

    What date were you censored?: 11/17/2021

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?: Against community guidelines, explicit sexual content, sexual solicitation

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: I appealed every time. I’ve been denied every time.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details.: I've lost all my contacts and follower on the platform. The loss of my Instagram portfolio on Instagram was a big deal for me, because nowadays it is a real professional showcase.

    Artist Website: https://linktr.ee/isabelrodriguez_artworks

    Artist Instagram: @isabelrodriguez_visual

    Artist Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/isabelrodriguezartworks

    Comments: In the last three years I have had two artistic accounts removed from the Instagram platform. I find it frustrating, disrespectful and deeply disturbing.

  • Reka Nyari

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram, Facebook

    Date of censorship: May 2020, Jan 2020, June 2019, Jan 2019, Nov 2018, June 2018, May 2018, March 2018, Jan 2018, Sept 2017

    Was there notification of removal? If so, what was the reason given?: Against community guidelines, sexual content

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: Yes sometimes. Once it was overturned, other times no.

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you?: My facebook was blocked for almost 2 years; 2-4 months at a time. Instagram removed the images.

    Comments: My Facebook account was suspended for 2 months without a possibility of appeal just a month before my solo photography exhibition at Fremin Gallery in NYC, and the release of my new fine art book, Geisha Ink. I had previously relied on Facebook to promote my work to my audience, and this was a huge blow. Years of growing my audience on the platform was wasted, all for an old image of me standing in front of partially nude artwork.

    Artist’s Instagram: @rekanyariphotography

    Artist’s website: rekanyari.com

  • Michael Walrond

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?: The notification I was given was for sexual solicitation

    What date were you censored?: 7/11/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: I was not given the opportunity to appeal, however I did send support a message to no response.

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.: Anxiety, threat of account deletion, loss of use of branded content tools, unable to run ads and promotions, and loss of income.

    Your website: http://www.shdwsofdust.com

    Your Instagram: http://www.instagram.com

    Your Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@shdwsofdust7

    Your Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/shdwsofdust

  • Andy Amyx

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram and Facebook

    Reason given: Against their guidelines

    What date were you censored?: 11/26/2021

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?: Yes. Against their guidelines

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: Yes. No response

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details.: Page deletions

    Artist Website: http://andyamyx.smugmug.com

    Artist Instagram: @amyxstudios

    Artist Facebook: Andy Amyx

    Comments: More should be done about posting violence that so rarely gets taken down. We glorify violence. Why? So sad. The amount of my photos that have been taken down is too many to count.

  • Guillem March

    Medium: 8x10 large format photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Reason given: Nudity or sexual activity

    What date were you censored?: 07/30/2021

    Was there notification of removal and if so was a reason given?: Against community guidelines

    Was there the opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: I clicked the “inform us if you think this is a mistake” button, with no results

    What, if any, were the consequences of the removal for you? Please give details.: Because of this and other removed images I’m in a permanent state of “you’re about lose your account”, which is a threat

    Artist Instagram: @guillemmarch

    Comments: The image that was censored had its “dangerous parts” blurred/pixelated, and yet…

  • Emma Shapiro

    Medium: Artist's Book

    Censored by: Instagram/Meta

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?:
    This image was removed for violating the "Adult Nudity and Sexual Activity" guidelines on Instagram. I was notified on March 15, 2023.

    What date were you censored?: March 15, 2023

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?:
    Yes, I was given an opportunity to appeal. I appealed and it was denied.

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.:
    This was a particularly aggravating removal because it was a post celebrating the fact that I had won a major award for my artist's book, Cut Out. It was very important for me to share this success, and to promote the important group who gave me the award: Mujeres En Las Artes Visuales.

    Please write additional comments:
    The removal of this post, and the denial of appeal, was quite shocking to me. I am familiar with posts being downranked and removed because of the nature of my artwork (which uses my own body in non-sexual ways), but this image was very obviously a photo of an art object-- white gloves included!

    The nature of this removal helps to prove that Meta applies their rules unevenly, and does not abide by they own stipulation that "clear artistic context" would allow for certain imagery.

    Your website: http://emma-shapiro.com

    Your Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/exshaps/

  • Adrian Alarcon Sanchez

    Medium: Analog photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?: The reason of removal was pornography, nudity and sexual activity.

    What date were you censored?: 2/10/2023

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: I appealed and the response was that they reviewed and still think it’s not ok for the platform

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.: This was a post trying to advertise my work and an upcoming exhibition. I was raging, not only because I lost time preparing the post and got angry by the removal. It’s also the feeling of being treated differently because in the picture there were 2 men kissing, the queer phobia that there’s in this platforms it’s still very present

    Artist's website: http://Alarconadrian.com

    Artist's Instagram: @Alarconadrian

  • Jill Goldman-Callahan

    Medium: graphite drawing

    Censored by: META: Facebook, Instagram and What'sApp

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?: My drawing depicted a target with a silhouette of a child's profile and an image of a teen wearing a teeshirt with a target. I was a public school teacher for 21 years. I wrote under the drawing that I was scared everyday of dying in a school shooting. I was told that I had posted an image in the genre of child sexual exploitation violating community standards by Facebook. i believe either a computer or a person with no symbolic understanding closed my account. My Facebook, Instagram and What's AP accounts were closed the next day and are unrecoverable. I am unable to open any new account due to facial ID, IP address, Router info, etc. Either this happened, or someone posted child porn on my account I never saw the post and they never offered to show it to me but the timing was very close.

    What date were you censored?: 7/22/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: I had no response at all to my appeal. There was no one to write to to explain.

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.: Loss of social contacts across my entire life span of sixty years. Loss of 15 years of family photos. Inability to know about funerals, deaths, births and major life events from my social circles. Inability to join FB groups for classes that I attend. Loss of business contacts, ie galleries, corporate art, etc. Inability to advertise my art openings on social media. Loss of artist networking opportunities. Loss of sharing contact and vetting info in a way that is used by most of society. I am left out of many conversations All this gives me feeling of being left out, depression, aloneness, frustration that there is no person to appeal to

    Please write additional comments: Thanks for doing this, I hope it helps. I feel I was grossly misunderstood by a machine within a corporate system. I strongly agree with the need to ban child pornography. What I drew is social protest art against child violence. My META banning is painfully ironic.

    Artist's website: https://www.jillgoldman-callahanstudio.com/

  • Claude BENOIT a la GUILLAUME

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Facebook, Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?: For the reason that on many of my photos of the series "Trampoline" we can see breasts and sexes. However, these are images in nature, without a sex scene.

    What date were you censored?: 2/11/2020

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: I sent a mail for humans to verify that my photos were not sexual. I never got an answer.

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.: My work on the body of this Trampoline series cannot be seen on the networks, whereas my message is precisely necessary to be seen by the greatest number.

    Artist's website: http://trampoline.photo

    Artist's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/photocbalg/

  • Luis Cabrera

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?: Yes, a message when I open the App, the reason was nudity and violation of the terms of use.

    What date were you censored?: 12/17/2020

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: No

    Were you given the opportunity to appeal to the oversight board? Did you receive a code that worked?: No

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.: Shadowbanned... Since then, my posts reach less audience.

    Other comments: I've got this situation at least five times in about 4 years, but honestly I don't remember the dates.

    Your website: https://saltevenenofotografia.mypixieset.com/

    Your Instagram: @salteveneno

    Your Tik Tok: @salteveneno

    Your Twitter: @salteveneno

    Your YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCCt-CdbJ-GUR6KVmgiTVFDg

  • Claude Gauthier

    Medium: Photography

    Censored by: Facebook and Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?: Images were deemed pornographic and all promotion referring to my site was banned, Rejection was maintained for many topics pertaining to my site thereafter

    What date were you censored?: 6/28/2022

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: No

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.: To this day, my website has been banned, regardless of the topics involved. All promotion initiatives have been blocked.

    Please write additional comments: I assumed that if I removed the page https://cgauthier.net/galeries#/clay/ , I might get a chance to publicize the content of my site but I am not prepared to go that route

    Artist's website:http://cgauthier.net
    Artist's
    Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/photocgauthier/?hl=en

  • Debora Barnaba

    Medium: photography

    Censored by: Instagram

    Was there a notification of removal and if so what was the reason given?: Yes I had a notification, even if I published the image censored they banned it twice. The reason was nude.

    What date were you censored?: 8/26/2021

    Were you given an opportunity to appeal? If so, did you appeal and what was the response?: no opportunity

    What have the consequences been for you because of this removal? Please describe in best detail.: anxiety, questioning, angry, confusion

    Your website: http://www.dbartworks.it

    Your Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/deborabarnabaartist