Nude paintings cause uproar

5:12pm Monday 14th March 2005

AN exhibition of nude drawings has caused a stir at the Harrow Arts Centre as it provoked a string of complaints.

"Man and Woman", a series of life drawings showing a white man and a black woman posing together, attracted eight complaints in a day after it was put up in the bar area.

One woman said that it "put her off her coffee" while another described it as "verging on the pornographic".

Art tutor Cheryl Gould said: "A group of Asian ladies attending a class last night complained to the manager that the pictures offended their sensibilities. Some elderly visitors also said it was not the sort of thing they wanted to be faced with in the bar. This is a remarkable reaction when my students' work has been up less than 24 hours. I have already had to relocate one drawing, but believe I will be fully supported by the Arts Centre."

The 16 drawings, a mixture of watercolours, oil, pencil and chalk, were drawn in August last year by eight students attending a four-day "summer figure drawing" class at the centre.

Ms Gould said: "In this day and age it is sad that drawings of the nude, even tastefully done, arouses such criticism. The word pornography has been mentioned, but although the models are posing together, I can't see that there is anything overtly sexual about it. Believe me, these ones are anodyne compared to some I could have used. I suppose it would not be politically correct to say that the colour of the models could have anything to do with it."

The exhibition is due to be displayed until March 24. A spokeswoman for the Arts Centre said: "We have received some complaints but intend to keep the pictures where they are. We have a long tradition of being an exhibition venue with a huge range of subjects and styles, and we encourage that diversity. Cheryl Gould is a long-established tutor and artist at the Arts Centre and the work she and her students produce is of a exceptional quality."