'Queer nudes deemed offensive'

Johannesburg-based artist Dean Hutton's catalogue for her upcoming exhibition, titled #Transitions: in search of an authentic queer, has been deemed "offensive in nature", by the Remata Printing Company.

Hutton, formerly Nadine Hutton, had approached Remata to print her catalogue, but the job was belatedly cancelled, which prompted the artist to request a public apology.

The exhibition at the Goethe-Institut is scheduled to run from November 19 until January 30, next year, as part of the Joburg Umbrella festival.

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Hutton, a Ruth First fellow and former chief photographer at the Mail & Guardian, said she sent a mock-up of her print job on October 22, and the following day visited Remata to show samples of a similar catalogue - no issue was brought forward then, she said.

She said by last Tuesday, she'd accepted a quote sent by the company and sent the final artwork for proofing.

She was then asked to pay a 50% deposit (R8,793), which she said she paid, but just over two hours later, she said she received a call telling her that the company has a policy to not print nude pictures, and that her catalogue would no longer be printed.

She called Remata's actions "an attempt to silence the queer voice and to hide the queer body".

But this weekend, Remata denied censoring Hutton.

In a statement, the company said: "Remata apologises for the inconvenience caused by cancelling the printing of Hutton’s catalogue".

"However, Remata’s standards, integrity and work ethic have led to the cancellation of Hutton’s catalogue, because some of its material was deemed offensive in nature."

Hutton said on the weekend: "This was the first time I have dealt with them [Remata], and it's also the first time I've experienced something like this. Nobody has ever said they have a problem with my work".

Describing the exhibition, Hutton said it was "essentially a documentation of my life, workings and collaborations with various artists - particularly, but not exclusively, queer artists".

It is an "exploration of queer visual culture in South Africa and locating it within the global narrative"

The work was made on an iPhone by Hutton in different cities including Paris, Cape Town, New York and Johannesburg.

"I have an interest in the way people live their lives, and showing people a bit more about myself," she said.