Police Force Artist to Cover Classical Image of Nude 'Eve'

DALLAS, Texas -
The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas ...
has filed a lawsuit against the city of Pilot Point and its police
department, charging that police officers violated an art gallery owner's
freedom of expression by coercing him to remove a mural depicting the
biblical story of Eve.

"It is unconstitutional for government officials to censor a work of art
because it might offend a small group of people," said ACLU of Texas
Executive Director Will Harrell. "It is also a misuse of resources to have
our law enforcement officials act as art critics."

Dwight Wesley Miller drew the attention of local police after displaying a
mural depicting the creation of Eve on an exterior wall of his art gallery
in the northern Texas town of Pilot Point.

The mural borrows heavily from
Michelangelo's "Creation of Adam" fresco in the Sistine Chapel, and in
particular from a portion of the fresco that depicts God reaching out to
touch Adam. At the far end of the mural sits a classical female nude, in a
pose that is a variation of Adam in the Michelangelo creation scene. God's
finger points at an apple, a traditional image of the forbidden fruit in the
Garden of Eden, suspended between God and Eve.

Because Eve's breasts were bare in the mural,
the Pilot Point Police Department repeatedly threatened,
in writing, to prosecute Miller under a criminal statute
aimed at those who would victimize children by selling or
displaying to them hard-core pornography.

In order to avoid the expense and
embarrassment of being charged with such a sordid crime,
Miller covered Eve's breasts
with a "Crime Scene Banner" tape.

"The threats against Mr. Miller by law enforcement were baseless and wholly
inappropriate," Harrell said.
"The Farmers and Merchants Gallery mural is no
more pornographic than the Sistine Chapel or countless other works of art
portraying classical nude figures."

The ACLU said that the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled that simple
representations of nudity are a constitutionally protected form of artistic
expression.
The Court has also declared that the First Amendment bars
government officials from censoring works that some people might find
offensive or morally improper.

The lawsuit, Miller v. City of Pilot Point, was filed on January 6 [2005] in U.S.
District Court for the Eastern District of Texas.
Attorneys for Miller are
Michael D. Napoli and Frederick Linton Medlin of Dallas law firm Kirkpatrick
& Lockhart Nicholson Graham LLP.

For a copy of the complaint, please go to:

http://www.aclu.org/FreeSpeech/FreeSpeech.cfm?ID=17295

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[Comment by SUN: Have Pilot Point city officials ever read the First Amendment? ]
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PS:
What's banned in Texas is barely newsworthy in Brazil:


Naomi CAMPBELL GOES TOPLESS IN BRAZIL

Supermodel Naomi Campbell stunned style watchers at a Brazilian fashion show ...
when she suffered a "wardrobe malfunction" on the catwalk.

The stunning Brit was modelling designer Tito Bessa's latest outfits at Fashion Rio
when a simple flower print dress came undone, revealing Campbell's breasts.

Ever the professional, the veteran model,
who has often gone topless on modelling assignments
and has posed nude for Playboy,
simply gathered the garment together
and walked off the runway.
[....]

- [ http://sfgate.com/columnists/dailydish/ ]
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