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Summary

In December 2010, Italian street artist Blu was commissioned to paint a mural at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) for the “Art in the Streets” exhibit. MOCA director Jeffrey Deitch ordered the mural whitewashed within hours because it depicted coffins draped in dollar bills, which he deemed inappropriate near a veterans’ hospital and war memorial. In response, a coalition of artists and veterans staged guerrilla protests including laser graffiti, mock funerals, and paste-up posters, eventually forming the group LA RAW to continue opposing censorship and militarism. The campaign succeeded in raising public awareness and supporting Blu, but did not change MOCA’s censorship policies [source: nv-database].

Tactics used

Tactics used

Background

Italian street artist Blu was commissioned by MOCA director Jeffrey Deitch to paint a mural on the Geffen Contemporary building for the upcoming “Art in the Streets” exhibit. Blu created a scene of coffins draped in one-dollar bills to express antiwar sentiments, but Deitch ordered the mural whitewashed within hours, claiming it was inappropriate because the wall faces a veterans’ hospital and a war memorial. News reporters later found that neither the veterans’ management nor the Go For Broke Education Center had formally complained to MOCA [source: nv-database].

What happened

On December 8, 2010, Blu began painting the mural, but Deitch ordered it removed within hours, and it was completely whitewashed by December 9 [source: nv-database]. MOCA invited Blu to paint another mural, but he refused in protest of the censorship [source: nv-database]. On December 16, LA Anonymous created a paste-up poster displayed near MOCA, and the image went viral after the LA Times published it [source: nv-database]. On January 3, 2011, about twenty street artists and war veterans gathered at MOCA’s Geffen Contemporary parking lot for a guerrilla protest performance, projecting laser graffiti onto the whitewashed wall using a device created by Todd Moyer, climaxing with a projection of Blu’s mural and the word “censorship” in red [source: nv-database]. Protesters also distributed handmade models of Blu’s coffin with dollar bills [source: nv-database]. On January 10, many participants formed the group LA RAW, focusing on freedom of expression and opposition to militarism and war [source: nv-database]. LA RAW distributed “Deitch condoms” with the phrase “Don’t Be Blu, Practice Safe Art” to symbolize censorship [source: nv-database]. On January 20, LA RAW protested against Smithsonian Secretary Wayne Clough’s removal of David Wojnarowicz’s video, holding a mock funeral for freedom of expression [source: nv-database]. On April 6, LA RAW created a paste-up poster reading “Broadum and Deitchy: Safest Show on Earth” and painted Blu’s mural on a van [source: nv-database]. When the “Art in the Streets” exhibit opened on April 16, LA RAW protested with guerrilla theater, whitewashing each other with paint, unrolling a banner reading “One Nation Under Deitch,” and holding a mock funeral for Blu’s mural [source: nv-database].

Key people & organizations

  • Blu
  • LA RAW
  • Leo Limon
  • Joey Krebs
  • Carol Wells
  • Todd Moyer
  • John Carr
  • LA Anonymous
  • Sonali Kolhatkar
  • Jeffrey Deitch
  • Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA)

Outcome

Verdict: partial.

The protesters achieved their goals of supporting Blu, keeping the conversation going, standing up for freedom of expression, and voicing opposition against militarism and war. However, they did not get MOCA or Deitch to change museum policies about censorship, resulting in a partial outcome [source: nv-database].

Lessons

  • Guerrilla theater and symbolic actions can generate significant media attention and public sympathy for free speech issues.
  • Forming a dedicated group (like LA RAW) can sustain a campaign beyond a single protest event.
  • Linking local censorship to national issues (e.g., Smithsonian case) can broaden the campaign’s relevance and support.

Sources

Disclaimer: Included as a teaching example of campaign craft, not as endorsement.

Sources & verification

  • nv-database — grounding: primary — license: link-only
  • Rewritten: 2026-06-25 via worker_casestudies_v2.py

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