His work has also been referenced by mainstream artists. Athey was the art-director for Porno for Pyros's video for "Sadness" (1994, remade as "A Little Sadness" in 2005); including performances by Athey and his company, the video adapts images and looks from his performance "Four Scenes in a Harsh Life", including the contentious Human Printing Press scene, in which Athey cuts symbols on the back of company member Divinity Fudge (aka Darryl Carlton). David Bowie appropriated (without permission) aspects of Athey's performances in the video for "The Hearts Filthy Lesson" (1995), in which porn performer Bud Hole stages signature piercing actions, and Bowie invoked Athey as an influence for his album "1. Outside" (1995), including in the cover notes. The first book dedicated to Athey and his work, "Pleading in the Blood: The Art and Performance of Ron Athey" edited by Dominic Johnson, was published in 2013 by the Live Art Development Agency and Intellect. It includes writing about his work by major artists including Guillermo Gómez-Peña, Anohni, Robert Wilson, Lydia Lunch and Bruce LaBruce, and essays by scholars such as Amelia Jones, Jennifer Doyle, Adrian Heathfield, Homi K. Bhabha and others. In 1994 Athey became a figure in a culture war, as conservative politicians fought to bar artwork with visible gay and feminist content from receiving public funding. Controversy regarding the nature of his work was part of a series of battles regarding work by gay artists—such as a lawsuit filed by the NEA Four (Karen Finley, Holly Hughes, Tim Miller and John Fleck), and legal battles around the exhibition of work of Robert Mapplethorpe, David Wojnarowicz, Andres Serrano and Joel-Peter Witkin. Excerpts from "Four Scenes in a Harsh Life" were staged at Patrick's Cabaret in Minneapolis on March 5, 1994, with support from the Walker Art Center. The Walker's Performing Arts Director, John Killacky remembers that "the sold-out performance was well received by an audience of about one hundred. Post-show discussions with the artist, attended by 80 people, were thoughtful and engaging. Theatre and dance critics had been invited, none chose to attend." During one scene in this performance, Athey made light cuts in co-performer Darryl Carlton's (stage name Divinity Fudge) back, placed strips of absorbent paper towel on the cuts and then, using a pulley, hoisted the blood-stained cloths into the air.