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Originally Posted by zerospinboson
Also of note: the Groninger Museum has about 2 rooms dedicated to photographs of people's faces, and an Arts student told me that another photographer was considering capturing on film the expressions on women's (presumably, as our society seems somewhat biased there) faces as they were experiencing orgasm.
In fact, some of the expressions on the faces of the - often rather young-looking - females in that exhibition (gotta love the word) were rather suggestive anyway, something that struck me as odd/trite at the time, as their faces suggested they were around age 16, and as such "meant" to be "provocative". (or whatever apologist description of that inclination applies here)
And while I suppose it would be ahistorical/naïve to say that art wasn't about the female shape in the past, I do have to say that it annoys me tremendously how artists (claiming "artistic expression" rights, whatever those are) are using everything as a justification for producing porn (that is, i fail to see what would be the difference between a website like BeautifulAgony and this "topic" for an "exhibition" in a regular museum.)
There is nothing wrong with discoursing about the use of art (in fact, the only way to decide whether something is art rather than kitsch is through discourse), and talking about sex is reputedly therapeutic, or at least can take away fear about the subject (see your local library for the collected works of M. Foucault), it has to be possible to decide that some stuff is crap and shouldn't be subsidized or mandatorily bought by museums that are required by law to invest at least an x amount each year in "modern" art.. While Bieito might draw crowds to the opera, i'm not sure it really adds something useful to the Wirkungsgeschichte of the Seraglio to have him direct it.
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The interesting thing about "porn" or even "kiddie porn" is that both are really a bell curve. And each culture draws its distinctions at different points on that curve.
Faces of young women supposedly having an orgasm?? Well, if it's just the face, and nothing else, in this country it probably wouldn't matter how suggestive the photo was ... if there was no (1) nudity, (2) depiction of the genitals, (3) depiction of the actual sex act, and (4) a clearly under the age of consent model ... then odds are it is not going to be treated as kiddie porn in this country. Somewhere else?? Possible, I suppose.
For the most part, the sort of stuff they are working hard to combat are things that could never be mistaken for family photos or art. Unless your family photos include the missus and your four year old daughter engaged in sex acts with a German Shepherd (and I am not talking about a citizen of Germany who herds sheep). Please note, that is considered to be "cruelty to animals" and a "crime against nature" and "child abuse" ... doesn't matter that the missus is of age. Doesn't matter that you are the parent of the child. Doesn't even matter if you took the photos in some ultra liberal part of the world where all those acts are legal. Bringing the photos of that activity into this country is emphatically NOT.
Probably the biggest targets for these types of search are people who are (1) registered sex offenders, (2) returning from places such as Thailand where child prostitution is a gigantic problem (and sadly a lucrative industry). It's not much different from being a known drug smuggler, or fitting the profile of a drug mule, and coming back from Columbia with a lot of suspicious lumps under your clothing. You're going to get searched ... I can practically guarantee it.
You know, I don't know whether to laugh or cry when people start going on and on about the "land of the free." It's a line from a freaking poem written by one man in a very patriotic moment after witnessing a battle and seeing that his country had at least survived that one night. It is not a phrase that is enshrined in any of the documents that govern this country and it does not have the force of law. The United States is a country of laws, first, last and foremost. Even the various States have laws that contradict each other right left and sideways (just ask any gay person trying to legally marry their significant other). If you don't think reducing the United States to a single slogan is offensive (and I realize that you, personally did not do this ... I am actually referring to those posting from the Netherlands), then be prepared to have your perception of reality tweaked.