![[sic]](https://www.sic.studio/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/sic_logo_black_400X262.png){kind=logo}
![[sic]](https://www.sic.studio/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/sic_logo_white_400X262.png){kind=logo}
Miniluv
NYC and Upstate New York | 2023 – present
An attractive campaign devoid of context
Miniluv uses short poetic phrases to satirize slogans, branding, and human behavior.
Mixing the language of Orwell’s newspeak, advertising, self help, and escapism, the phrases are vague and symbolic, eliciting interpretations that reflect the viewer’s core self and identity.
So far, the project has produced both physical and virtual ephemera, including billboards, posters, murals, newspaper centerfolds, pins, and t-shirts.
Upon the censorship and destruction of a Miniluv mural in upstate New York, the project transformed into social practice, expanding beyond art into law, activism, and public discourse.
A federal lawsuit is now underway in the Southern District of New York, centered on the defense of free speech and artist rights.
“It’s a beautiful thing, the destruction of words.”
– Syme, 1984
“The choice for mankind lies between freedom and happiness, and for the great bulk of mankind, happiness is better.”
– O’Brien, 1984
“Vallone suggested replacement text for the mural to read, ‘Dancing in the moonlight, #kingharvest,’ referencing the song by the same name. The River Reporter asked him what the significance was of that song as a replacement. ‘Feel good, baby,” he said. “Peaceful and joyful celebration of life.’”
“It’s art to you, but it’s bullshit to the rest of us!”
– heckler at mural reception, Roscoe, NY
“The past was erased, the erasure was forgotten, the lie became the truth.”
– George Orwell, 1984
“The words ‘to unperson’ do not qualify as a work of visual art.”
– Lawyer in motion to dismiss for alleged destruction of mural
“In the end the Party would announce that two and two made five, and you would have to believe it.”
– George Orwell, 1984
ABOUT
Miniluv was created by Seth Indigo Carnes and originally co-curated as an intervention titled “2024” with Rodney Harder at the 2023 Deep Water Literary Festival in Narrowsburg, New York, where the work of George Orwell was the theme. The project continued with a mural in Roscoe, NY that was censored and destroyed, leading to pending litigation focused on the protection of free speech and artist rights. Crazy Wall is the latest artwork in the Miniluv project, mapping and revealing public documentation ongoing changes across art, law, and media, marking the project’s movement into social practice.
ARTIST STATEMENT
A first version of an artist statement was written for the public reception of the Miniluv mural on 8/3/25 in Roscoe, NY, following threats to vandalize, erase, and otherwise remove the mural. The statement was revised in early June 2026 to represent the latest state of the project.
View the PDF
LEGAL FILINGS
Concerning the Miniluv mural in Roscoe, NY, the following is a legal complaint filed in the US District Court, Southern District of New York, on 4/1/26, focused on a civil rights action brought pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 to redress suppression of Plaintiff’s protected artistic and political expression in violation of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution and Article I, sections 8 and 11 of the New York Constitution, and an action under the Visual Artists Rights Act, 17 U.S.C. § 106A, to redress the destruction of Plaintiff’s work of visual art. The complaint was amended twice; this link leads to the latest version.
RELEVANT LINKS
Pathway to a lawsuit: Freedom of speech, art and the Town of Rockland, Letter to the Editor, River Reporter, July 21, 2026.
Time to Censor: New art installation highlights censorship from Roscoe mural, River Reporter, July 14, 2026.
Mural artist amends Rockland lawsuit, Manor Ink, July 2026.
Time to…Read the Constitution: Artistic Expression is Protected Speech, National Coalition Against Censorship, June 4, 2026.
Artist sues Town of Rockland over Roscoe mural, article killed by The Sullivan Democrat because it was “old news”, May 28, 2026. (PDF)
Art, Free Speech, and Community Conflict in Roscoe, WJFF Catskill Radio, April 21, 2026.
Destruction of controversial Roscoe mural raises questions of free speech, community character, River Reporter, April 20, 2026 .
Un-muraled: Community backlash leaves mural half-finished in Roscoe, River Reporter, August 4, 2025.
Support free speech! Stop the censorship of a contemporary art mural in Roscoe, NY!, MoveOn.org petition started by the publisher of ArtKill magazine.
THANK YOU
Rodney Harder, Aaron Hicklin and the Deep Water Literary Festival, the town of Narrowsburg, NY, Laurie Stuart and The River Reporter, Ariel Shanberg and Delaware Valley Arts Alliance (DVAA). Jeff Kinkle of Kinkle Law. The National Coalition Against Censorship and Arts Equity Group. Teresa Tulipano. Robyn Almquist and Artkill Magazine. Ali Azios / Marcus Brooks and New Memories.
