Women in the art world need balls to get ahead
Although the status of the work of female artists may seem like a simple case of discrimination, in reality, the problem is much more complicated. Before I begin looking at the more complex issues behind the problems facing female artists, I thought it would be interesting to look at some facts and statistics so that the discrepancies can be put into perspective. In November 2007, the New York Magazine did some calculations and published some rather revealing figures relating to the number of female artists represented at several major art institutions. At the time, only 15% of the artists whose work was on show as part of the permanent collection of the Whitney Museum of American Art were female. The 2007 Venice Biennale could only manage a 76% male/24 % female split while Art Basel Miami Beach managed slightly better with a 73% male/27% female split. Worst of all was the Frick Collection which had a collection that was a mere 1% female artists.
well this is depressing and sobering.
I came from a boyz club as you know. working in IT as a Project Manager I had to have my own pair of balls safely ensconced in my purse (and sometimes displayed on my desk). I was the perfect corporate-female from my powerbun to my suits- trying to never let a whiff of femininity (read: weakness) show.
you would think that the art world would be about the art, you would think it would be above such petty things in it’s long and glorious life. but no. I covered the discrepancies in the Guggenheim back in 2006. it seems that little has been done since. I look forward to reading the rest of the series and may touch back on it.
oh and don’t worry abut me, I am used to playing in a boyz club. I still have those balls around somewhere and I am not afraid of a challenge- especially one presented to me for the paltry reason of my gender.
Posting schedules be damned!
Kneeling by Jennie Rosenbaum
do you know what? my brain doesn’t work to a schedule. I want it to.. but it doesn’t. so I get so many ideas for posts and I never write them down, why? because somewhere I came under the belief that I needed to adhere to a posting schedule of some sort. I am not the sort to can a post for later, so it never gets written, and then I forget about it when it comes time – so I don’t even adhere to my schedule anyway! it’s enough to make you crazy- or at least it’s enough to make me crazy as the two constantly battling hemispheres of my brain go at it once more, warring over the need for structure and schedules and the need to be spontaneous and creative.
This is affecting my artwork too, I think and I plan and I schedule and I get in my own way and trip over my own need for organization. some planning is good, my artwork is definitely showing that, but I need to stop planning so much and getting everything perfect and just Go For It I need to recapture spontaneity.
this posting schedule is driving me crazy, it’s adding to my stress levels and it’s actually preventing me from posting. so it’s gone! I will still post Friday Nude Quotes but apart from that I think I am going to just let the posts fall where they may, there may be none in a week and then 10, there may be 2 one night and none for the rest of the week. I don’t know, but I need to give myself a break and write when I want to, not when I feel that I should.
Pigeon Holed
I have felt pigeon holed lately by my writing. I am building a reputation for myself as a nude activist. Someone who stands up time and again to state that the nude is not porn and is not always about sex. I don’t believe the nude is necessarily sexual but i also think that there is a place for sexual expression in art without it being porn.
i have felt as though i am bound by this stance. it has stopped me from writing about certain topics, even from painting more explicit works. I feel like cannot write about my own sexuality or artists that I admire who do create sexualized nudes for fear of diluting my message or scaring off readers. but, do you know, there also comes a time when I have said almost everything there needs to be said on a particular subject, I don’t wish to repeat myself, I want to keep my blog fresh and new, rather than rehashing the same old tired arguments every time a nude is censored.
and what if a week or two go by without any censorship of nudes? what do I write about then? this blog was started initially to be a journal of my evolution as an artist and my developing career. but it started to get away from me, as writing often does, and take on it’s own life. I think there is room for both, I think there is room for a whole gamut of topics.
I have been thinking for a while now on the direction of this blog. I really enjoy writing, but lately I have suffered from the bane of all writers, writers block. so, in an effort to kick start my ideas and hopefully re-energize my blog, I am going to turn the question over to you, my readers – what would you like to see me write more about?
Nude Madonna and guy fall short of expectations
No sale for nude Madonna and Guy from BBC News
Madonna & Guy, an admittedly rather unflattering likeness by Peter Howson, was estimated to rake in between £15,000 ($24,603) and £22,000 on Saturday at McTear’s, the Glasgow-based Scottish auction house, but didn’t sell — despite generating unprecedented press coverage, a McTear’s representative said. The painting had been commissioned by a Scottish collector in 2005 and was one of many the Scottish artist had painted of Madonna.
[From Nude Madonna Painting Fails to Find Buyer - ARTINFO.com]
this is an excellent example of ‘it’s nude and it’s a celebrity therefore it must be art!’ throw in two celebrities and a whole lot of hype and you will get this auction. but no amount of twitter buzz, news sites and publicity will turn this painting into an attractive and desirable work of art. I notice that the leading buzz was very careful to mention the names of Madonna and Guy Ritchie as much as possible but you had to really really dig to find a picture of the piece.
having a celebrity as a subject is usually good for reputation boosting, buzz and moneys in the bank. and Peter Howson has received a lot of hype and exhibition requests due to this series. I feel a need to say however, that probably having the piece closely resemble the celebrities in question might work a bit better. Without the hype I would never have known who those people were supposed to be. I do like some of the tones and shadows used, but overall I find myself unsurprised that this piece did not sell. perhaps people are not as all out celebrity obsessed as we thought.
nudity in art – equivalent to racism, violence and blasphemy?
Artist Margaret Tuckey, of Banksia Park, with one of her exhibits for the Gully art show. Pic: Neale Winter
One of the artists rejected last year for her nude submission to the Tea Tree Gully Council’s exhibition has decided to enter another nude this year, this time of a reclining male.
Margaret Tuckey, whose nude entry was rejected last year, said the show would be a “bland” display of still lifes and landscapes under new guidelines and if they knock back her latest painting of a nude man “they don’t even know what art is”.
The new guidelines, unanimously endorsed last week by the council’s social inclusion committee, will cover entries in the next show, to be held at the Civic Centre in August.
The committee decided the council had a duty of care to protect Civic Centre visitors from any pieces of artwork “depicting images containing perceived violence, racism, sexism, nudity, blasphemy, cultural discrimination and other issues that may be seen to be discriminatory or offensive”.
Artist Margaret Tuckey protests TTG Council censorship of nudes
Now I don’t know about you, but I love that nudity is considered to be equivalent to violence, racism, sexism, blasphemy and cultural discrimination.. they are all so clearly related. if people are seen to be nude, what on earth will become of us then? wont somebody think of the children?
you don’t hate children…do you?
the poll at the bottom of this article quotes that passage word for word. not ‘are nudes in art offensive’ not ‘should artistic nudes be included’ but “Do you agree with the Tea Tree Gully Council’s decision to ban “images containing perceived violence, racism, sexism, nudity, blasphemy, cultural discrimination and other issues” at its annual art show?’ thus putting them all on an equal footing.
I hope the council revisits it’s policies, but I doubt it will. I hope Margaret Tuckey gets her work in this time, but I doubt she will. mostly I hope that the council and the article that I have quoted here will look into their wording and see the suggestiveness and implications present in the wording of this phrase, but I doubt that will happen either. Because this has become a point of bureaucracy. and the reality is that nobody wins when bureaucracy has it’s way.
wondering what to do with your economic stimulus package? – Stimulate an artist!
every day we are faced with new information about the slowing economy, belt tightening news and now, the economic stimulus packages. these bonus’ are given out to taxpayers so that they can be put back into our consumer driven economy and help keep it afloat. the problem with that is that usually the money goes straight to a heartless corporation to buy a meaningless valueless product. will it make us happier? probably not.
and what if you don’t agree with the government’s stance on numerous issues? the cleanfeed? censoring artists? why not take their money and use it to buy yourself a lasting treasure, an investment and help out people in need all at the same time? and why not send a message while you’re at it?
Use your Rudd dollars to buy nude art!
feel warm and fuzzy inside knowing that you’ve helped out an artist (many of whom live below the poverty line), and if you live in australia you can feel happy knowing that you are using your money to help out an artist who will not be getting any help from their government because of their subject matter.
oh look! here’s some nude art!
and if you don’t like mine, Hazel Dooney has recently started a new blog showcasing her more affordable works.
Customary nuisance
I thought once I shipped my works to the Italian exhibition all I would have to worry about was the exhibition itself and getting them back again. how foolish am I?
first I de-stretch and package the works. I sent them off Express Courier International which is Australia Post’s best international service. It’s the one I always use for overseas deliveries because it is super fast and super safe. I have never had any problems with them.
the very next day I get a call saying they can’t ship the works because the combined value required an exporters registration number. this involved a trip to customs in the city, a lot of paperwork and resulted in my becoming a licensed exporter – cool!
so that was the end of it – right?
it gets sent to Italy. where it sits. in customs. for 2 weeks. why? who knows? apparently Italian customs is somewhat capricious.
the upshot is that the gallery are being fantastic, they are working hard to get it resolved. Australia Post are being less fantastic. I think the time and language difference is making it Too Hard for them. the exhibition has been postponed until we can get the works out of customs. I feel completely useless. and rather pissed off.
tighter nudity restrictions for Australian Artists
The most repressive aspect of the guidelines is that they require retrospective documentation of compliance for images of nude or partly nude children taken over the last 18 years. This documentation will need to be reviewed by the Classification Board before such images can be exhibited. In other words, works such as Henson’s, which until now been have exhibited nationally and internationally and have not broken any state or federal laws, will be required to undergo review by Australia’s censorship body.
Aside from their anti-democratic character, the protocols present a multitude of almost impossible bureaucratic hoops through which artists and galleries will have to jump.
For example, prior to any future exhibition containing work produced by Henson in the last 18 years and featuring children, the photographer would be forced to track down the people involved, most of whom would be adults, and procure written confirmation of their own or their guardians’ consent for work produced at the time. What happens if any of those portrayed are untraceable or have died? Does that mean that the artist’s work cannot be exhibited or distributed?
Another contentious issue is that only depictions of real children will come under scrutiny, but not those images derived from “fantasy” or imagined. How is a viewer, editor, curator or censor to determine whether a painting or image is of a “real” child or an image conjured up by the artist, or an amalgam of several sources?
Another requirement that impinges on artistic spontaneity, a crucial element in the creative process, is the requirement for parental consent before a child is featured. Should an artist photograph their own child naked and then decide at a later point that the photograph has artistic merit, its exhibition or distribution could be prevented on the grounds that the artist had not sought a police check or signed a declaration of adherence to the protocols prior to taking the photo.
you may recall I posted about these when they were proposed back in October. having now read more about the “guidelines” that are now in effect I find myself completely bewildered and stumped. how on earth will any of this be enforced? how will they know if a painting is from life or imagined (or from a 3d resource like I use?) this strikes me as a pretty useless bill. a way to really annoy legitimate photographers like Bill Henson and Polixeni Papapetrou who will have most of the details in their files. It’s something that will be a hindrance, slowing down artists and galleries as these hoops are jumped through, ultimately for nothing.
why for nothing? why won’t it protect children? because the people they are prosecuting are not the ones that need policing. they are spending money and time and effort chasing down artists and making them jump through hoops when they should be out finding the real perpetrators of child pornography.
does this affect me? no, most of my works are adult and from imagined or 3d sources (or both). it is tailor made to specifically attack artists like Henson. and witchhunting is always wrong. I care about this because it sets a bad precedent. the government should never involve itself in censoring art and artists.
Nudes clothed in protest of web censorship
SHANGHAI (AFP) – Chinese Internet users angered by censorship in cyberspace have dressed up images of famous renaissance nudes in a protest against Beijing’s crackdown on “vulgar” online content.
Images posted as part of the protest include Michelangelo’s statue “David” shown in a Mao suit while black socks and a strategically placed necktie were added to the artist’s depiction of Adam on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
The protest began last week after a user of the social networking site Douban.com complained that images of several paintings, including Titian’s nude “Venus of Urbino,” had been deleted from an online photo album.
According to blogs on the site, Douban’s administrators had told the user that posting pornography would endanger the site’s operations.
In response, protest’s organisers asked Internet users to clothe artwork to “save” it from the censors, who have shut down 1,635 websites and 200 blogs in a one-month campaign against content that “harms public morality.”
[From by : Yahoo! Tech ]
An interesting protest to combat the idiocy of internet filtering. China’s mandatory filtering has been extended to include traditional fine art including the David, the Sistine Chapel and other pieces that are only considered humorously obscene on the Simpsons. what saddens me, however, is not so much the regulations in China, a country renowned for heavy personal restrictions and censorship, but the fact that this may also become the case here in Australia. For a while now there has been talk of putting a mandatory filter on all australian internet to filter out anything on a secret government blacklist. the government will have the power to arbitrarily change whatever is filtered on the cleanfeed. this sounds like an insane plan from the pen of George Orwell but this “clean filter” has become less of a case of maybe and more a case of “when”. despite the protests, despite the fact that this will do very little to block actual criminal activity and illegal porn, despite the fact that it will slow our internet speeds substantially, the government is spending 128 million on a flawed plan. 128 mil that could go towards internet education, towards helping protect against fraud or helping support the online units that are sadly undermanned. 128 mil that could go towards helping the people who have lost everything in the fires.
If you are wondering why I am writing about this here, it is because I don’t want to clothe my nudes, even as a protest! we already know how the government feels about nude art, how long will it be before artists like me are filtered out?
you can find out more information and do your part to protest here: http://nocleanfeed.com/ or follow the #nocleanfeed conversation on twitter
There is good news in China though, I hope that when it’s our turn our protests will be as effective.
“Netizens in China are becoming more and more innovative in their ways of protesting against censorship authorities’ arbitrary use of power,” blogger Catherine Yeung wrote in a comment on the protest campaign.
And the protest has had an almost immediate effect.
By Thursday (local time), the Shanghai user whose renaissance album started the controversy said Douban had allowed the deleted paintings to be shown in their original form.
(when did this become a political blog?)
The last few weeks.
it’s been a difficult few weeks. stuff has been happening to disrupt our lives at the moment and I have not been coping as well as I would hope. we still don’t have a home to move to and we have to be out in two and a half weeks. rental occupancy is at an all time low and every open for inspection is swarming with prospective tenants. my husband’s hours have been cut back drastically and we are having a hard time making ends meet. despite all of this I have managed to host a large family christmas, recapture my christmas spirit and joy and to enjoy the holiday period. I have been able to catch up with good friends, family and to really enjoy the holiday (all the while telling myself that I couldn’t look for houses anyway with all the estate agents closed – so I may as well have fun!)
I still believe in christmas. not the religious aspects, but the sense of unity and joy that this season brings. I believe in miracles and in making a new start. I believe in renewing hope and in getting together with the people you love and focussing on only that. spreading joy and happiness as much as possible.
I am sure our problems will resolve themselves. they always do. I am such a control freak that I tend to work as hard as I can to bring about a resolution. I will make this happen.
Thankyou all for being patient with me. I am sorry this is such a downer post, I wanted to share with you the reasons why I can’t focus on blogging or even painting. I expect things will resolve soon. thankyou all 
Children in Art Protocols
BeatriceThe document focuses on four central areas: making sure children are protected from when the artwork is created until when it is shown; how to relate the nature and content of the material to viewers; protecting children from being exploited; and creating guidelines while maintaining the council’s support of artists and artistic freedom.
Respondents included academics, community and government bodies, and children’s right activists. According to the document, many people expressed genuine concern for the rights of the artists: “Upholding the freedom of practice and expression in the arts was a key consideration raised by many stakeholders,” it says.
The respondents were generally divided between those in favor of the protocols and those who fear that their creation will lead to the censorship of artists.
[From Australia Council Releases Children-in-Art Protocols Document - ARTINFO.com]
I am uncertain on how I feel about this. I don’t object to there being regulations to protect children, definitely not on a general scale. I do however object to there being regulations surrounding art. art is about breaking boundaries and rules, to broadening people’s minds and to extending their worlds. art should be challenging and at times uncomfortable. it should be without rules by it’s very nature.
I also believe that parents should be responsible for their children, that it is up to them to ensure they are not exploited or mistreated. and yes, I know sometimes it can happen regardless, but I resent the government saying that parents have no rights over their children – what? and no, hovering anxiously over children isn’t the answer either. I’m sure there must be a happy medium in which children grow up at the proper time, dress their age and avoid miscreants and ne’er-do-wells. (and I realize that I have no say as someone who is not yet a parent, but as I intend to be one day and am an insane planner you better believe I have given these areas much thought.)
again I ask what is being done about the children who are really in need? Obviously not enough, and yet more time and effort is being funneled into these less important issues. yes children need protecting, but not necessarily from artists.
Prudish council rejects nude art
“I unwrapped my work and they looked at it and told me it was inappropriate and they would not hang it in the exhibition,’’ Ms Tuckey, a TAFE art teacher, said.
“They said that school children would be seeing the exhibition. I couldn’t believe anything as simple as a nude drawing of a female adult that is not full
frontal … would not be accepted. It was a rude shock.“I think some of them are ignorant of what art is, this is art and this is an art exhibition. I’d say (to the council) grow up.’’
A nude portrait won an award at the same exhibition last year in which Mr Eames was allowed to enter a nude sculpture of the Greek god Poseidon “rising
from the cliffs with his penis exposed’’.Mr Eames, of Tea Tree Gully, said he was “dumbfounded’’ to be excluded this year. “I said `you’ve got to be joking’ and the organiser said `if you’re both going
to continue to protest, I’ll have to ask you to leave the premises’.“I argued that school children go through tours at galleries like the South Australian Art Gallery and see nudity all the time. The (organisers) said it’s coming
from the Mayor and their hands are tied … They need to get with the times, don’t be a bunch of prudes, this is the real world.’’[From Is it too rude? TTG Council thinks it is - - News | Leader Messenger ]
Another example of a knee jerk reaction following the Henson and Nelson Debacles. The fact that a nude won last year just highlights the sheer hypocrisy at work in the Arts councils at the moment. the works are very nice, classical nudes. there is nothing sexual, indecent or provocative about them. There was a time when the US was considered to be more prudish, more censored and fearful, but this year Australia has really taken the cake. According to the Mayor, who had not actually seen the works in question, these pieces are “extremely graphic” nudes.
Mayor Miriam Smith denied she had ordered staff to reject nude entries.
She said it was a “staff decision’’ but one she supported. “Staff rightly so rejected the pieces based on their graphic nudity,’’ she said. “… it’s not about the pieces of art work, it’s about the environment they were to be displayed it’s not an art gallery it’s a community show where children can come into.’’
While Ms Smith said she was not “personally opposed to nude art … when people go (to the exhibition) they don’t expect to be confronted with extremely graphic nude pieces of art work’’.
[From Is it too rude? TTG Council thinks it is - - News | Leader Messenger ]
There is, however, a happy ending. Russell Starke of Greenhill Galleries was so appalled by this senseless censorship that he snapped up both works for his gallery. within days, the sculpture by artist Scott Eames sold for $1000. He has also received an offer for a solo exhibition at Greenhill galleries next year.
Melbourne regulates freedom of expression
ARTWORK depicting sex, violence, nudity and drug use could be removed from Melbourne council-funded galleries under tough new regulations.
Artists will face strict censorship on what can be displayed under a shake-up of Melbourne City Council’s art protocols.
Curators and gallery owners will also be expected to alert council to potentially controversial pieces ahead of schedule. Questionable work would go to a council review panel before going on public display.
This is a big deal for melbourne based artists. Under the excuse of the Henson witch trial, censorship has become more and more apparent in this previously artist friendly city. these regulations are the latest step in an attempt to try and enforce censorship and restrictions to one of the last bastions of freedom of expression. artists will be screened for acceptability before exhibiting in any government sponsored gallery or art space. our art will be policed and our work will have to fit into a socially comfortable mould. after all, why challenge people? why confront them and make them think? what can possibly be gained from stepping outside of a pre established, government sanctioned comfort zone?
crusade against nude art harmful rather than helpful to children
The goal of protecting children should have no argument. But making children afraid of all nudity doesn’t protect them. It makes them anxious, insecure and more susceptible to poor body image and other problems, including abuse.
The desireless subjectivity that we construct as childhood innocence seems never to work. Then we construct dangers to justify our wrong notion, like pedophiles lurking on every street, or good sex education causing teens to have sex. These are contemporary versions of warnings about masturbation causing blindness.
Australia’s insidious media frenzy in these fiascos may seem exaggerated to us. But the censorious attitude is also found in North America. To develop real child protection and teach teens about responsible sexual health, we must stop misconstruing photographs, oversexualizing children and fabricating a moral panic.
This is some of the sanest arguing on this subject I have seen. and not just because it mirrors my own beliefs. I believe that they are tackling this issue the wrong way and in a way that will ultimately be more harmful for children. the latest news in this long line of histrionics is the decision to change classification laws in Australia. in other words, “we don’t like the results the classification board is giving so we are going to change them to suit our own means”. does this strike anyone else as wrong? I thought the point was that the classification board was above the meddling of any one group. totally autonomous. that was supposed to be their strength last I heard.
there are genuine child sex abuse crises happening in Australia at the moment. and have been for some time. and I’m pretty sure that the key demographic involved neither read Art Monthly Australia nor visit upscale Sydney Galleries. but this is a way for the government to look like it’s doing something I guess. it’s something that says we care about children (white, middle class children anyway). it just happens that what they are doing is completely useless to the children involved, and harmful in other ways that they’ve never considered. but like most crusades, it’s more about the face value than the actual damage and actual results.
Trials and Tribulations
sorry for my lack of posting. I’ve been meaning to update you all on the new paintings I’ve been doing, the news from this show and other shows and all the little bits that go into making an exhibition work. the problem is, that I fear that a lot of that stuff is only exciting to me and possibly a couple of other artists. I’ve been working like crazy on this, trying to get it all done and ready on time. I’ve been working so hard in fact that my husband is threatening to take away my computer. which only means that I will probably work more in the studio until i drop from exhaustion. which is happening a lot at the moment. I’m stressed, panicky, asocial, cranky and regularly mutter under my breath. I can’t sleep, eat or relax. and so, of course I hide away from things like blogging which is a form of communicating with the outside world.
I reassure myself that it will be better when it’s over, then I have the depression to contend with and finally the rest before ramping up to the next one. the good news is, that I am not alone. almost every artist I’ve ever heard on the subject is the same. I think it comes from a fear of putting ourselves out there. our works are so intensely personal that it is ourselves hanging on the wall, ready to be judged. and yet we crave the attention, we want our works seen, we want the collection to be viewed together. so we panic and stress and worry, then the absence of that stress and panic and this thing that we’ve thrown ourselves into is over all too fast and we crash. and the fact is, we thrive on it! it’s one of those stupid artist things that make no sense. it’s exhilarating, it gets the blood pumping and the brain churning faster than ever. creativity spikes and ideas come fast and furious. better one crowded hour of life…
Down with phplist
I have had it with phplist! the amount of issues I’ve had with that stupid program are just not worth mentioning. I have officially stopped being a cheapskate now and have paid for a proper mailing list provider at Your Mailing List Provider. so far they seem to have what I want, their tests have so far come up well, they had an extensive free trial) and I wont have to spend hours mucking with it every time I want it to do something.
as far as I can see, the problem is that my server runs php under apache. it’s not it’s own entity but almost a php simulator- diet php, and phplist seems to have massive problems with that. I could spend more and more hours working on it and get more and more frustrated, but as I see it $40 isn’t that much an outlay for a year of stress free newsletters. plus, paying for it may actually encourage me to send them more often.
I will try to make this changeover as smooth as possible, there will be some to-ing and fro-ing but hopefully you subscribers wont actually see anything but newsletters that work the way they’re supposed to.
Overwhelmed
I’ve been going crazy the past few days. I can’t help it. I’m a perfectionist, obsessive and demanding, I expect only the very best from myself and my personal opinion of myself seems to weigh heavily on whether or not I’ve attained that perfection. considering it’s very hard to be perfect, you can imagine what my usual opinion is.
This exhibition is a catalyst for that. a massive challenge and a massive load of pressure. it all came bubbling to a head yesterday when the stress took over and I cracked for a little while. now that I’ve cracked, and faced the worst I am ready to go on again, building up, pushing further and faster ahead until I crack once more from the strain and the lovely cycle starts over again.
my body is starting to show signs from the pressure and being sick again recently has not helped this. I’ve been warned however and I’m determined to beat this self defeating cycle. that means I have to do something really, really hard. I have to learn to relax. you may laugh, but I just don’t relax. ever. even when i’m sleeping. but I am going to really work at this. so my apologies dear readers if my posting drops off over the next few weeks. I will try to keep up, even if it’s just a short note on a new piece. but if I skip a day or so here and there try not to think too badly of me – I’m probably in the studio because, luckily, painting is something that almost always gives me some measure of peace.
Apologies
I think my phplist went a little haywire this weekend. I was creating my newsletter mailings as I usually do and it crashed and I think in the effort to try and fix it I may have sent out multiples of the same newsletter to people. if I did I am truly sorry. I have almost had it with phplist. it seems to be one issue after another after another and I’m just not sure I can keep it up – it just looks so unprofessional. still, I guess you get what you pay for…
Sexualization of Minors in Art
It is now the task of art historians, critics and fellow artists to explain Henson’s work and defend his status as one of our finest artists. Their job is almost impossible.
The current debate about the representation of children and adolescents is so charged that anyone who disagrees with claims that pedophilic images are proliferating before our eyes is open to the charge of pedophilia themselves.
Henson’s work is art and, as such, it falls into a different cultural category to the ads for kids’ clothes and the tween magazines that have been the central focus of this debate. But these distinctions are irrelevant to people who believe that visual representations of children and adolescents are the real source of child abuse.
I have been thinking further about the issue of sexualization of teens in art. I think if the case against Bill Henson were to go through we will start to see extreme limitations in the freedom of expression and artistic freedom. we will also see a harsh and difficult change in the way we handle teenagers and the way they see themselves. This article fascinated me because I think there is a real fear that if you aren’t shocked and offended by Bill Henson’s artworks you are obviously a pedophile. I think that is the reason so many other galleries are following suit. it’s almost gestapo tactics.
I wonder what it says about the person who sees these pieces and immediately thinks they’re sexual. is it automatically because they are nude or is it because they felt a response and assumed others did as well? or is it that all emotional responses to a nude work, especially one of a nude minor, must be either outrage or titillation? I had an emotional response when I saw the first uncensored piece in the age. it was one of almost sadness, a fear for her going through puberty and experiencing so many new things, physically and emotionally. it reminded me of going through puberty myself and the uncertainty of it all – a sense of pride warring with fear.
Viewing this website forcibly reminded me of the dangers of fetishising innocence. School uniforms may well titillate pedophiles and prompt them to commit crimes. But is banning school uniforms the correct response?
If we go down the path of saying that all images of children and young adolescents can only portray them as ideal Brady Bunch kids, then we will spend our lives, as a society, looking for images of corrupted children and teenagers everywhere. Worse, we risk looking at every image through the lens of the pedophile.
I agree with this, by trying to anticipate what might turn a pedophile on we may be stepping into their shoes and thereby, not only destroying our own view of art, but possibly ruining the experience for others. the reality is that there are sick people in the world. there are people who will get turned on by the images of corpses in CSI, who will get excited by the shoes in a catalogue or even the feet in the Sound of Music (read this article for more on that surprising development). so what can we do? we can stop trying to predict them, stop trying to anticipate what they might find titillating and risk damaging freedom of art and expression, the reputations of renowned artists and focus instead on making sure our children are safe and educated. that they have control over their bodies and their own sexuality. I don’t want to step into a pedophile’s shoes, I don’t want to try to think like they do. and I don’t want to see beautiful artwork degraded just because some strange person might think it’s sexy.
if this goes ahead, what is on the cards next- huggies ads? Anne Geddes? where do we draw the line?
“children should not be exposed to nudity”
“We have also indicated that teachers are at liberty to choose the type of art they wish to use in the classroom. But they should check with the learners’ parents first.”
The chief executive of the Federation of Associations of Governing Bodies of South African Schools, Paul Colditz, said children should not be exposed to nudity.
“I am not an art expert and I won’t comment about the relevance of nude art in the school curriculum. But from a moral point of view, no parent would want their children to be taught about nudity at school,” Colditz said.
I’m sorry, don’t these kids have baths? get undressed and dressed again? have gym at school? what a delightfully general comment – “no parent would want their children to be taught about nudity at school” first off, haven’t the children already been taught about nudity? in it’s most basic form? one presumes that if these kids haven’t heard of nudity or seen it in some form by the time they get to school, well there is certainly something very wrong.
This restriction applies to school curriculum in South Africa where performance artist Steven Cohen has been struck from the curriculum due to his nude content. the arts community is outraged because Cohen is one of South Africa’s most famous living artists. but I think this issue is deeper than striking one artist from the books, because where one is dropped, more may follow – and then what? Paul Colditz’s attitude horrifies and dismays me – how many works of art will be sacrificed out of fear that children may see a nude body?
Renovations
my House has been under siege for the past few months. a unit is being built behind it and massive external renovations are being done to my actual place. I have accepted most of this with good nature and tolerance but I am so over it now! between losing my driveway and now my front stairs (rendering me a prisoner in my own house) and being assaulted at all hours by machinery and power tools I almost lost it today at the renderers who decided to start outside my bedroom window at 8am with the radio blaring. Our landlord is doing his best, but this is turning into a nightmare!
luckily my studio is still a place I can go to chill, I put on my headphones and I can almost blot them all out. almost. I am having difficulty painting and relaxing into my work with a constant stream of noise and distractions.
Media Furor over Teen Nude
The much debated Miley Cyrus Portrait by Annie LeibovitzI don’t want to come across as a prude but surely creating this pedophile fantasy of a Disney star crosses the line.
We’ve had our Olympic swimmers pose nude in Black and White magazine, and the Matildas soccer team strip for a calendar that the word “tacky” barely describes.
And there’s a whole chorus line of young, beautiful actors ready to bare their breasts for a part in a TV show or movie.
These young women can talk all they like about how empowering it is, how it’s all “in context” and not “gratuitous”, but I doubt they’re even fooling themselves.
The reason women are asked to take their clothes off for the camera is as simple as sex – it’s because men like to look at naked women, and exposed breasts and bums will sell magazines, calendars and movies.
This article has made me so angry I could spit. The narrow mindedness and lack of understanding of art, particularly nude art is off the deep end. now, I am not necessarily condoning nude pictures of 15 year olds, however I maintain that it is wrong to imply that it isn’t art, and that it is purely sexual. I see in this piece a sense of mourning for the innocence of that age and the fact that it is completely gone in the child stars especially. look beyond the surface dammit!, this isn’t a sexy piece – it’s saying stop looking at me like a sex object! she is using the sheet as a shield. Everyone is acting like this is something new and some great taboo has been broken- underage models in art are nothing new, classically they were commonly used. even in contemporary Australian art there are examples in Brett Whiteley’s painting of his 14 year old daughter in the shower, Bill Henson’s beautiful nudes, all exploring innocence. because nudity can also be an expression of purity and of innocence.
I have had the misfortune to see hannah montana on a couple of occasions. I’m sure it’s very popular amongst the kids, I don’t get it personally, but have you seen what she wears? her clothing on stage is tasteless and crass, bold, splashy and certainly very sexualized. her clothing line is as well. her show encourage little girls to rely on looks, clothing and that they just aren’t anyone if they aren’t slim and in a short skirt. how is this better? why not get upset at the fact that little girls are dressing like hookers instead? I find that much more disturbing. when will people learn that clothing influences us and our peers much more than what’s underneath? (and I refer to what’s beneath the skin as well there). and that is not the way it should be.
The portrait under fire is by renowned artist Annie Leibovitz, taken for vanity fair of Miley Cyrus, Disney’s Hannah Montana. Her parents were present. her grandmother was present. They would have all seen and approved the proofs before it became public. I think the whole thing is a bit of a publicity stunt but I am appalled at the attitude of Sally Morrell and other reporters who don’t seem to have actually looked at the pic (or any art for that matter). I am deeply offended at the heavily implied notion that all nude photographs are sexual, that the only reason to pose is to titillate and arouse. I am also offended at the very heterogenic attitude in this article but that is another battle for another day.
Dear myspace..
Doubt – 24x 20 Oils on Canvas by Jennie Rosenbaum
Dear Customer service, I have been trying to get a response to a question by a human so far without success. now it appears that even the bots are disregarding my politely worded question.
My account has been recently deleted. I am an artist specializing in tasteful expressive nudes dealing with women’s issues such as body image. none of my paintings show anything more than I have seen on any other myspace page in photographs, sometimes depicting minors. my works are enjoyed by people of all ages and backgrounds and will be featured on prime time national television here shortly.
What I am after is a statement on the T&C’s nudity prohibition. I would like to know:
- What counts as nudity to myspace – how much of a body needs to be unclothed for it to contravene the T&C?
- What body parts may or may not be shown on a myspace page? please be specific here – breasts, nipples, buttocks, mound of venus, vulva, peni, etc.
- What is the opinion of myspace of Not Safe for Work practices? Most people consider NSFW to consist of nudity in a sexual or arousing context as opposed to a more utilitarian one.
- What is the degree of censorship to painted/sculpted nudes as opposed to photographic nudes?
- What is the degree of censorship to artworks as opposed to other members’ nude and semi nude happy snaps?
I would like to start a new page and try to regain the ground I have lost but I would like to know the details of the nudity clause so that I don’t contravene it, and so that other artists may use myspace without fear of losing their hard work as well. please be as detailed as possible in your response, I would prefer to have too much information rather than not enough – not enough information is what led to this problem in the first place.
I eagerly await your response,
Sincerely,
Jennie Rosenbaum
http://www.jennierosenbaum.com
a narrow view of nudity
Of course there is a long tradition of the female nude, but it’s one that is by and large repudiated by feminist painters and theorists; the reviled “male gaze”, all that. Why, then, do women artists so readily volunteer for this same gaze? Why, where men’s art typically says “look at this”, does women’s art now typically say “look at me”?
This article is a stunning example of the modern attitude towards nudity. a response to Germaine Greer’s recent article on women’s art and to the Moran prize winner this article is naive and clearly written by someone woefully ignorant of art and art history. Contrasting feminism and mills and boon the writer equates nudity with sex and considers all nudity created by women to be narcissistic and sexual, especially if it has the artist in it.
my response, how about writing a cohesive article about a subject you understand and have researched? perhaps take the time to go to a gallery, see nude art, talk to the artists. go to a library and look at some images from art history, nudes by men and women, male nudes, female nudes, and self portraits. don’t jump on a band wagon half cocked because you see a buzz area. for recent news go and look at Nancy “beth” reid’s self portrait, look at moran winner Fiona Lowry’s with What I Assume You Shall Assume, (to pick two recent newsworthy pieces) really really look at them, don’t avert your eyes- look into theirs and try to see everything they wanted to say. then come back and tell me it’s all sexual.
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