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Previous controversy: Michael Dickinson's banned website and President Bush "pants" collage here

STUCKISM
MICHAEL DICKINSON
(Istanbul Collage Stuckists)

Jail threat: the story to date

Michael Dickinson is a British artist and the founder of the Istanbul Stuckists. He has lived in Turkey for fifteen years. In June 2006 he displayed a collage Best in Show, showing the face of Turkish Prime Minister, Tayyip Erdogan, on a dog's body being given a rosette by President Bush. This was seized by the police, and he was told he would be prosecuted. In September 2006, he arrived at court and was informed he would not be prosecuted for lack of evidence. Outside the court he held up a similar collage, Good Boy, and was arrested, being detained for 10 days. He was again informed he would be prosecuted. In October 2007 he arrived at court, and the case was adjourned so that the opinion of professors could be ascertained as to the worth of the collages. Fuller overview on Wikipedia.

Current situation:
new trial date set for 24 March 2008

MICHAEL DICKINSON Michael Dickinson still faces possible jail for a collage. Sign the protest petition on mungbeing.com. The petition states: "We, the undersigned, support an artist's right of free expression.We stand firmly with Amnesty International in their calls on the Turkish authorities to terminate without delay all prosecutions against individuals under the notorious Article 301, and to abolish all other articles in the Turkish Penal Code that stifle and punish freedom of speech and expression. We call for the prosecution of Michael Dickinson over his political collages to be dropped." UPDATE OCTOBER 2007 Michael Dickinson appeared in Kadikoy 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance, Kadkoy, Istanbul on 8 October 2007, accused of insulting the dignity of the Turkish Prime Minister under Article 125. The case has been adjourned. Michael Dickinson said, "Case due for 11.30 was delayed until 2 pm. A couple of witnesses gave evidence - a plain-clothes police woman who said she'd seen me open the poster of Good Boy last year in the corridor of the court building when I was showing it to another person; and the policeman who had arrested me after I opened it to photographers waiting outside. The judge said the next hearing will be on the 24th March, during which time he will have gathered the opinions of the university arts professors on my work." Article on Michael Dickinson in Pasadena Weekly (20.9.07), Northern Echo (2.10.07), + Artinfo, New York (2.10.07). Also Coxsoft (19.9.07) and Saatchi Gallery blog (6.9.07). See the Independent (15.5.07) (3rd story) Also Guardian blog post (21.5.07). Collage on display in A Gallery here. Good Boy, the offending collage by Michael Dickinson shows the face of Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan.

LETTER SENT TO GORDON BROWN 29 September 2007 Rt Hon Gordon Brown MP Prime Minister 10 Downing Street London SW1A 2AA Dear Prime Minister I would like to ask for your intervention in the case of British artist Michael Dickinson, who lives in Istanbul, where he is due in court on 8 October under Article 125 on a charge of “insulting the dignity of the Prime Minister” after displaying a collage. Conviction can result in a jail sentence of up to two years. I enclose a copy of this collage, Good Boy, which depicts the Turkish Prime Minister’s head on a dog’s body with a Stars and Stripes leash. This kind of satire is of course commonplace commentry in this country, and it is intolerable that a country applying for EU membership should censor freedom of political comment in this way. A year ago, when he was arrested, Mr Dickinson was held for 10 days in a Turkish police station, in inhumane conditions. He reports that he could get virtually no sleep, with lights on twenty-four hours a day, thick cigarette smoke, loud music, shouting from policemen, and screams from prisoners being abused in the next room. Mr Dickinson’s case has already achieved international media coverage with coverage from UK national press including The Times and The Guardian. I trust you will communicate your strongest condemnation of this prosecution to the Turkish government, and ask for this case to be abandoned immediately. I ask for your assurance that you will oppose Turkish European Union membership, until Turkey adopts the attitudes of the civilised world towards freedom of speech and human rights. Michael Dickinson is the Istanbul representative of the Stuckism International art movement. Yours sincerely Charles Thomson Co-founder, The Stuckists

Jailed for 10 days in September 2006

Michael Dickinson, Stuckist artist, was jailed in Turkey for 10 days for a collage in September 2006. His work was later shown at GO WEST. Video interview on More 4 here. Story in Guardian here. See new dog collage which Michael Dickinson showed in court and for which he was jailed here. Background on Michael Dickinson here.

Collage seized by police in June 2006

Political censorship Michael Dickinson is the John Heartfield of our time with his scathing, inventive and exquisitely-wrought political collages. Michael Dickinson site here Email mdickinson@kablonet.com.tr Michael Dickinson is the founder of the Istanbul Collage Stuckists. Left: Best in Show with face of Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish Prime Minister, on dog's body, being given a rosette by President Bush.

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