Updated April 21, 2017 12:56:42

Photo: Dark Mofo has barely been staged without some sort of controversy. (ABC News: Gregor Salmon)

When the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA) opened in 2011 it was expected to shock and offend some sensibilities.

Dubbed a "subversive adult Disneyland", David Walsh's private art collection boasts a series of walls lined with carved vulvae and the infamous stinky poo machine.

And one of the most controversial exhibits is also one of the smallest — an untitled work by Jannis Kounellis featuring live goldfish.

Earlier this year, Walsh wrote in a blog post after Kounellis' death that people "complain incessantly" about it.

The darker side of art

Often, MONA's winter solstice festival — Dark Mofo — has made headlines for all the wrong reasons.

A recent petition against a sacrificial ritual performance by Hermann Nitsch is just the latest in a long list of times the event has caused offence.

Back in 2013, its now famous nude solstice swim almost never happened when it was deemed contrary to public decency laws by Tasmania Police.

It was eventually allowed to go ahead in a different location.

Photo: The nude solstice swim held as part of Dark Mofo is now almost routine and not very controversial. (ABC News: Gregor Salmon)

That same year, the festival also made headlines with an exhibit that caused seven people to have seizures and a Launceston alderman was outspoken about an 'offensive' hot air balloon.

Photo: Patricia Piccinini's Skywhale was brought to Tasmania for the first Dark Mofo in 2013. It then travelled to Launceston where alderman Annette Waddle said it was suggestive and offensive to women. (ABC: Michael Dalla Fontana)

In 2015, multimedia artist Leon Ewing — who took part in Dark Mofo's Hothouse project — courted controversy after suggesting high school students should use drugs to enhance creativity.

And just last year, Dark Mofo found itself once again at the centre of debate over art and censorship when Hobart artist Scot Cotterell's piece titled Shitstorm was pulled from street view and moved into a gallery space.

Photo: The artwork by Scot Cotterell pulled from public view. (Supplied: Scot Cotterel)

Outside Dark Mofo, MONA exhibits are often at the centre of debate on what is acceptable — but only one exhibit has ever been removed for good.

Swiss artist Christoph Buchel's 2014 exhibit offering a DNA test for Aboriginal ancestry was axed after MONA consulted with elders who expressed concerns about the concept.

Photo: MONA decided to remove the Aboriginal DNA testing part of the exhibition. (Supplied: The Australian )

Outrage is good for business

Walsh has gone on the record as saying the controversy over Nitsch's upcoming performance is good for business.

And Dark Mofo's creative director Leigh Carmichael said in 2015 that keeping Dark Mofo fresh and weird was the key to success.

So chances are the list of controversial artists and exhibits associated with MONA will only grow longer as the years go by.

Photo: Cloaca by Wim Delvoye of Belgium is one of the smelliest artworks. (ABC News)

Topics: contemporary-art, carnivals-and-festivals, library-museum-and-gallery, community-and-society, ethics, hobart-7000

First posted April 21, 2017 12:47:17