London
(ANI):
A
provocative
nude
photograph
of
10-year-old
Brooke
Shields
on
display
at
Tate
Modern
exhibition
has
attracted
fury
of
child
campaigners.
The
photograph
by
Richard
Prince,
a
New
York
artist
shows
the
actress
standing
naked
in
a
bathtub,
staring
directly
at
the
viewer,
with
a
heavily-made
up
face
and
an
oiled
torso.
The
controversial
photograph
has
been
separated
from
the
other
exhibits
and
placed
in
another
room
behind
a
closed
door.
A
notice
on
the
door
warns
visitors
that
they
may
find
the
work
"challenging".
The
Tate
consulted
lawyers
before
including
it
in
the
exhibition,
which
opens
on
October
1.
"As
with
any
artwork
that
contains
challenging
imagery,
Tate
has
sought
legal
advice
and
evaluated
the
situation," the
Telegraph
quoted
a
Tate
spokesman
as
saying.
"Tate
has
taken
measures
to
inform
visitors
of
the
nature
of
the
work,
providing
information
outlining
the
intentions
of
the
artist,"
he
added.
Prince's
work
is
actually
a
photograph
of
a
photograph,
originally
taken
by
Garry
Gross,
a
US
photographer,
in
1975.
It
was
commissioned
by
Shields'
mother,
who
intended
to
turn
her
daughter
into
a
child
star.
He
describes
Shields'
appearance
in
the
photograph
as
"a
body
with
two
different
sexes,
maybe
more,
and
a
head
that
looks
like
it's
got
a
different
birthday".
Children's
campaigners
reacted
with
dismay
to
the
exhibition.
"Brooke
Shields
was
10
years
old
when
this
picture
was
taken.
She
could
not
have
given
informed
consent
to
it
being
used.
It
must
be
bordering
on
child
pornography.
It
is
certainly
not
art," said
Michele
Elliott,
founder
of
Kidscape.
"If
you
are
using
a
picture
of
a
naked
child
to
bring
people
to
your
exhibition,
then
you
are
exploiting
that
child.
It's
as
if
they
are
using
a
10-year-old
girl
for
bait.
I
find
it
disturbing
and
they
should
be
ashamed
of
themselves.
And
putting
the
picture
in
a
room
with
a
warning
outside
really
is
a
magnet
for
paedophiles,"
she
added.