As a father and small-business owner residing in West Asheville, I am writing to share a recent experience that left both my 8-year-old daughter and me deeply unsettled. While driving along Haywood Road, a piece of window art displayed at Orbit DVD, adjacent to the Westville Pub, caught our attention for its graphic and disturbing imagery.
The artwork depicted cartoon characters, recognizable as Popeye and Olive, engaging in a violent act of decapitation, holding down a struggling man against his will, with an onlooking baby reacting with apparent joy. Blood is spraying out.
I asked my daughter how it made her feel. She said, “Confused and sad.”
I understand and respect artistic freedom and expression; however, I have to ask what the intent is of putting this on public display in our community? Why would a business wish to proclaim death, terror and suffering — not to mention a baby’s joy at seeing someone getting their head cut off? What is our society turning into? If this is a political statement, it falls flat, and recognizable cartoons only serve to connect on a deeper level with our children.
Art has a powerful ability to influence and shape perceptions; it creates imprints in minds, particularly young, impressionable minds like my 8-year-old daughter’s. The decision to display such graphic content in a public storefront needs to be seriously evaluated by our community and its leaders.
I urge the business owner — along with our community and its leadership — to reconsider the placement of such artwork in a public space. It is my hope that together we can create an uplifting community environment where art empowers and inspires the best humanity has to offer, rather than the worst.
Thank you for considering my perspective.
— Jesah Segal
Asheville
Editor’s note: Xpress reached out to Orbit DVD’s owner, Marc McCloud, but he declined to comment.
