Child porn OK'd for Australian public exhibition
Pastor Dale Morgan
Child porn OK'd for Australian public exhibition*
Police drop action after Hollywood star defends 'art'
Photographs of nude 13-year-olds confiscated by police from a Sydney,
Australia, gallery have been returned following a flurry of objections
from artists – including movie starlet Cate Blanchett – and a decision
that successful prosecution under child porn laws was unlikely.
The exhibit was created by photographer Bill Henson, whose dark and
dramatic imagery is studied in Australian schools. The photos prepared
for display at the Roslyn Oxley9 gallery in the Sydney suburb of
Paddington, however, focused on images of naked 13-year-olds.
Police seized 32 Henson photographs on May 23rd, following a complaint
that the art constituted child pornography. Since then, police have
investigated Henson art at three other New South Wales galleries, seized
printed invitations featuring Henson's nudity photos and rounded up
copies of Art World, a magazine featuring Henson's controversial pictures.
Australia Prime Minister Kevin Rudd weighed in on the action, calling
the exhibit "revolting."
Also weighing in were Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett and 42 other
artisans who were part of a council on the arts convened by Prime
Minister Rudd in April.
In a letter addressed to the premier of New South Wales state, the
artisans wrote, "The potential prosecution of one of our most respected
artists is no way to build a creative Australia and does untold damage
to our cultural reputation."
The letter also said that "we should remember that an important index of
social freedom, in earlier times or in repressive regimes elsewhere in
the world, is how artists and art are treated by the state." It defended
Henson's photos as art, saying they have "nothing to do with child
pornography."
If convicted of child pornography, Henson would have faced 10 years in
jail. The New South Wales police, however, dropped the investigation and
returned the photos, stating that "this is a complex area of law" and
that "successful prosecution was unlikely."
Gallery director Roslyn Oxley expressed gratitude to the artisans and
others who gave messages of support during the investigation, telling
the Sydney Morning Herald, "These messages give us faith that our
society really is as we believe it (to) be – one that is open to frank
debate and inquiry and not afraid to voice differing views."
Among those differing views is Prime Minister Rudd, who has refused to
retract his earlier criticism. "I said what my views are as a parent, I
don't budge from that," he told Australia's Nine Network television.
Police Commissioner Bob Atkinson of Australia's Queensland state told
ABC Radio in Brisbane that he believes criminal charges would have been
justified. "I think that was over the line and I do think that was way
beyond what normal community standards would be in terms of what's
appropriate and what's offensive or not," he said. "If it happened here
in Queensland, I'd support the prosecution."
Child welfare advocate Hetty Johnston, the woman who made the initial
complaint against Henson's work, also voiced her objections. "This a
picture of a naked 13-year-old child. We are just handing our children
on a bloody plate to pedophiles," she told the Sydney Morning Herald.
"This is a disgrace for this country, absolutely shameful."
The controversy was further complicated by a ruling from Australia's
Classification Board, an independent statutory body of the Australian
government that issues ratings to films, computer games and
publications. The board reviewed five of Henson's photos – including the
confiscated gallery invitation featuring a nude adolescent – and gave
them a "PG" rating.
Despite the subject being 13 years old, the board ruled the "image of
breast nudity…creates a viewing impact that is mild and justified by
context…and is not sexualized to any degree." The Commission declined to
enforce any restrictions on displaying Henson's photos.
The ruling and return of the photos clears the way for the Roslyn Oxley9
Gallery to reopen its Henson exhibit, which was temporarily closed
during the police action. Roslyn Oxley would not confirm whether or not
her gallery would re-hang the returned photos.
A spokesman for the Albury Regional Art Gallery – another New South
Wales gallery to have Henson photos taken down – said he expected their
returned photos would be redisplayed in the future as a part of the
gallery's collection.