news.com.au

“I’m really, really offended by what Kevin Rudd had to say about this picture,” she told reporters.

The father of the naked girl depicted on the cover of Art Monthly magazine has written of the "diabolically sexual" potential in child images.

Robert Nelson, art critic with The Age, has responded angrily to criticism of the nude pictures of his six-year-old daughter Olympia in the magazine's most recent issue, which may be pulled from the shelves after NSW authorities ruled it needed to be classified.

But, as revealed by Herald Sun columnist Andrew Bolt in his blog this morning, Mr Nelson has previously written of the specific sexuality of such pictures, arguing that "the sensuality of children is integral to parental fondness".

In the essay - which features on the website of Mr Nelson's wife Polixeni Papapetrou, who took the pictures of Olympia - Mr Nelson says some photographs taken of Olympia by his wife in 2000 when she was just two years old were taken "at the instigation" of their daughter: "'Mummy, come and photo me', she would exhort."

The "taboo" of such images is described as "the fear of the child’s latent sexuality and its potential for exciting inappropriate and sinful desire".

Mr Nelson also refers to the use of the dummy in the photos of Olympia as "a necessary token of her age; ... Yet the dummy, itself, is ambiguous;… it also evokes the perversity of pleasure-sucking, i.e. a sucking for non-nutritious purposes, apparently serving a hedonistic function unrelated to nourishment."

Bolt described the words as "deeply, deeply disturbing" and Mr Nelson as "irresponsible" despite his insistence on the need to protect children from sexual abuse

The Australian Classification Board has asked Art Monthly to submit its publication for review.

The Attorney-General's Department today confirmed that the board's director Donald McDonald had made the request.

Under the law, a publication can be classified unrestricted, category one or two restricted or "refused classification" - in which case it is banned from Australia.

If it is deemed to be in either of the two restricted categories it will only be available to people aged over 18.

It will also need to be pulled from display and sold in a sealed cover if the cover is considered inappropriate.

All copies will also have to be pulled from stock to have their cover marked with the appropriate classification.

If the publishers do not comply they face serious financial penalties.

Comments (4)

djewell: ... THIS "FATHER" AND HIS WIFE NEED TO BE INVESTIGATED FOR THEIR INTERACTIONS WITH THEIR CHILD. PEDOFILIA COMES TO MINE HERE FOR SOME REASON. SOEM PEOPLE SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO HAVE CHILDREN. 1 July 10, 2008 OCCD: ... Reminds me of an old "Blind Faith" album cover from the 70's. 2 July 11, 2008 det ret rpd narc: careful there Ron and guys at In the Line of Duty the Feds, out "brothers" may comne in to "help" you and charge you with showing child porn too.... This is sick that people can get off on viewing and watching children in sexual photos. They all need to be dead... 3 July 11, 2008 88pdx: ... Arrest the parents and the editors of this so-called "art" rag, and have a big bonfire of all existing copies, preferably with the parents and the editors tied to stakes at the center. Also, have the parents explain the obvious bruises on the child!! That kid looks terrified and was obviously manipulated by sick adults to pose this way. Does Australia have Child Protective Services? PS: The young woman on the Blind Faith album cover was over 18 (supposedly...) at the time of the photo of her holding the airplane. 4 July 13, 2008

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