What is it about a nude that’s offensive?
At my local shopping center there is a massage place. The poster in the window has a nude woman’s back and the prices extending down her spine. It’s a cute concept until you get to the lower region.
This woman has buttocks, but no dividing line.
You can see where the heal tool was used, and you know that even with some shapes there is no way that this woman was born without a buttcrack.
In Japan, anime with nude breasts can be shown on any channel at anytime- providing the nipples are removed.
In many countries the tiniest bikini (an inch covering the butt and nipples) is enough to satisfy propriety while nudity or g-strings aren’t.
The details, it seems, must be covered or removed.
This makes me wonder. Is it the breast that’s “offensive” or is it the nipple? Are buttocks a problem or just the crack? Why are they offensive? Is it because the are the functional part of that zone? Or because they are the defining characteristics of those dodgy areas? If nipples are the offender then why are men’s acceptable?
Consider this an open forum, I want to hear your thoughts on these questions!
Too rude? Speech part 3: nude models and artistic merit.
Part one and part two have already been published. This is the third and final part of my 10 minute speech for Sydney University’s Tuesday Talks program. Frequent readers may recognize some passages here, I couldn’t improve on them!
When I initially wrote about the Bill Henson scandal a number of people told me that I would feel differently once I was a parent. As if that would change who I am. I am proud to say that i am now the mother of a little girl and my views have not changed. I believe, as I did then, that if she were approached by an artist to be a model I would support her. That isn’t to say that I wouldn’t do my due diligence on the artist to ensure they were on the level, and I would be there with her. But the decision is not mine, it would be hers.
One thing that struck me about the model known as N, the adolescent in the image seen on the invitations that caused much of the furor, is that when interviewed she discussed all the considerations she made before modeling. She considered how she felt about her body, how she may feel about school mates seeing her in the nude and how she might feel about it years later.
The most important thing to realize is that what you take away from viewing an artwork is not just what the artist puts in, it’s what you bring to it as well.
Your past affects it as much or even more than the artist’s intentions.
Everyone sees art differently which is why it is difficult to judge, and why it should never be stifled.
artistic merit should not become a goto excuse for pornographers, that harms us artists more than anyone – but it must be allowed. we cannot create under a blanket of censorship and we cannot be the artists we need to be without freedom to create. art has the power to challenge our views, to make us think and and to change the world. I believe that the arts are one of the most powerful forces of humanity and should never be denied.
There is a difference, too, between sexual and sensual. There are as many shades of gray as there are stages of undress. Art can be arousing. It should be arousing. It should inspire passion. Not just sexually, but in all things. Arousal and passion are not just the pervue of sexuality, but of life. And art is life
Child pornography and art are different things, Hetty
One of the exonerated Nude Teen Pictures from 2008 by Bill Henson.
Picture by the Daily Telegraph
Bravehearts executive director Hetty Johnston has written to the Baillieu Government asking it to crack down on images such as those created by controversial artist Bill Henson.
But artists say they should not be censored and current guidelines for art are adequate.
A Senate committee has recommended classifications be applied to all media, including art in galleries.
It also called for a review of child pornography laws and for the “artistic merit” defence to be axed from child pornography offences.
Ms Johnston said her group did not oppose art or photographs showing children in real life, but set-up shots of naked children for “artistic purposes” should be outlawed.
“It crosses moral boundaries, and we believe it puts children at risk and it could exploit children,” she said.
Australia’s classification laws are under review and under attack once more.
Hetty Johnston and her band of fanatical cohorts are still not satisfied after Bill Henson’s confiscated works were reviewed by the clssifications board and deemed to be no more hazardous than PG. clearly it isn’t their views that are at fault, but the classifications board itself. when you don’t like the results- change the law. Clearly the problem with child pornography in Australia stems from artists. absolutely without a doubt.
I do believe, however, that the classifications rules do need to be reviewed and repaired. they are exceptionally ambiguous and are not helping us artists in our defences any more than they are helping Hetty. if anything they are already heavily on the Hetty side, but are so ambiguous that it comes down to the preferences and opinions of the board. characteristics such as breast size should not be a factor – breasts do not make a woman. they may as well choose testicle size as an indicator.
While a ban on the sexual depiction of minors will have strong community support, there’s a much greyer area involving adults or even animated characters who look young. Most adult movies (online or DVD) come from America and carry official government statements guaranteeing that all participants are over 18. These cut no ice in Australia. Furthermore, Hentai Manga (Japanese sexual comics) are so popular in Japan that they are freely available for browsing in 7-11 convenience stores and read openly on trains. But they are RC in Australia – potentially a rude shock for Japanese tourists visiting with such comics in their luggage.
Note too, that over the past year, the Classification Board has started using breast size as a criterion in defining child pornography: a less than precise indicator
[From ABC The Drum - Secrets of obscenity: the classification riddle]
I also believe that, more than the classifications system, the constitution of Australia needs to be reviewed, amended and honored. how many Australians even know there is a constitution here? who knows what’s in it? The US Constitution is one of the most powerful pieces of writing in the world. freedom of speech is one of the most honored of the freedoms and is celebrated. yes, occasionally it is abused, but it is such a sacred right that it cannot be denied. it seems to me that Australia needs some inalienable rights of it’s own.
artistic merit should not become a goto excuse for pornographers, that harms us more than it harms Hetty- but it must be allowed. we cannot create under a blanket of censorship and we cannot be the artists we need to be without freedom to create. art has the power to challenge our views, to make us think and and to change the world. I believe that the arts are one of the most powerful forces of humanity and should never be denied.
Where is the First Amendment?
The more i think about it the more i think Australia needs a better constitution. There is nothing here that protects a person’s basic right to express themselves. Therefore we are at the mercy of a government that believes it has the right to morally guide us based on the whims of the party in charge.
It’s no news to anyone here that the compulsory internet filter has been approved. The blacklist of sites deemed too inflammatory will be blocked from public eyes. This list has been proven to have mistakes. Such as a dentist and a school cafeteria. And politically active sites that speak out against the government’s heavy handed censorship. What people overseas may not know is that the party in charge is considered to be the left wing party. it is becoming more and more apparent that both parties here are republican.
in addition to the clean feed mandating what we may or may not view online is a new legislation currently in the works to strike artistic merit as a defence for works containing nude children. Yet another knee jerk reaction designed by the government to try to stamp out child pornography. This, and the clean feed, are supposed to stamp out child pornography. And, like the clean feed, has a snowball’s chance of achieving It’s stated goal.
now, i think child pornography is beyond criminal. I belive it is one of the most disgusting things that exists in our society. However, i don’t believe for one second that targeting artists or individual websites will even make a dent in this issue. The government has gone to enormous expense, removing funds from task forces that were making a difference to fund a witch hunt that all the experts say will have no real results.
i try not to get too political. Especially in a country where i can’t vote, but what are they thinking? Rather than funding projects that do work and actively pursue the root of the problem, this government seems hellbent on attacking symptoms without treating the underlying problem.
I will probably write more later, right now I am too angry to think straight.
Who’s side are you on? body painting nude art debate
Painted Models by Grace Tam
In my usual news feeds about nude art I came across these two articles. or rather this article and a rather negative response to it.
Rather than do my usual discussions and debates on the matters at hand I would like to turn them over to you, who do you side with in this issue? the artists or the council? Personally I find the language involved fascinating.. I will wait to voice my own opinion for now.
Both Baggio and Grace Tam said they were approached during the painting process by a member of the Maple Ridge Pitt Meadows Arts Council who voiced concern that the nudity could become an issue.
“I was a bit confused,” said Baggio. “Normally with body painting, it’s done completely nude, but we’re covering the bottom already.” Baggio was wearing black bikini bottoms and was topless, but Tam had already finished painting over the entire chest. She and Tam agreed to put flesh-coloured Band-Aids over her nipples, and those were painted over. They both say they thought it became less of a taboo issue now after Baggio’s nipples weren’t exposed.
Baggio was covered in paint by the time the show began, and Tam painted on a second human canvas later in the evening. The second model also covered her nipples and she was wearing tights on her lower half.
There were children both in attendance and performing in the show, but the artists said they received a mature reaction from the young attendees.
“The children couldn’t care less; not one child was making a deal out of it,” recalled fellow performer C.J. Jackman Zigante. “It was one of those things where if the adults didn’t make an issue of it, they didn’t either.”
“They thought it was neat, and their parents were fine with it too, from what I could see,” said Baggio. “They were there for an art show.”
The discussion over the boundaries of art and nudity are worthwhile and timely. The arts council presents undraped models in painting classes and we are pleased to do so.
But, just like it is appropriate for all people to be able to judge whether they wish to attend an “R” rated movie with their children, it is appropriate that we inform people in advance whether there will be nude art at what was advertised as a family event. This is allowing families to use their judgment; an important freedom we respect.
Freedom of art is not advanced by trampling on parents rights, but by artists and the public having mutual trust and respect
…
The members of the board of the arts council are hardworking volunteers. Many of them are artists and they are certainly not prudes. We were happy to have body art tastefully displayed in the lobby, and apologize to those families who have shared their upset that the models then appearing on stage beside their children (without the director of the show’s permission), and to anyone in the audience that also took exception to this.
I look forward to reading your comments. it’s an interesting situation!
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