Unesco invites an artist to exhibit his sculptures and forces him to censor the private parts with knickers and thong

Unesco invites an artist to exhibit his sculptures during the Heritage Days and forces him to censor the private parts with knickers and thong.

During the 2019 Heritage Days, the visual artist Stéphane Simon was invited by theUnesco to exhibit some of his sculptures inspired by the Greek world at his headquarters in Paris. It was not the first time that the works of the great artist were shown in public places, but in this case something absurd happened. The sculptures, two life-size naked bodies, they have been "censored" so as not to offend the sensitivity of visitors. Unesco has indeed asked Stéphane to hide the gender of the marble models using long johns and thong.

Obviously, the decision has sparked endless controversy, as reported in the editorial published in Le Point on October 14 by journalist Sophie Coignard.

Stéphane Simon's statues are part of the “In Memory of Me” project, dedicated to the universe of selfies, a ritual that inevitably conditioned our postures, and that reveals our deep need for theatricality, myths and games.

Unesco invites an artist to exhibit his sculptures and forces him to censor the private parts with knickers and thong

According to Stéphane, in our need to immortalize ourselves we can find a link with the heroes of Ancient Greece because heroism, admiration, identification, sacredness are always involved. The positions we take while taking a selfie are in fact identical to those of the ancient heroes, to which the artist's statues are inspired, revisited in a contemporary way.

In short, an interesting project that of Stéphane that has nothing scandalous and offensive. Yet, in the age of selfies where everything can be shown, paradoxically Simon's elegant and refined nudes are censored by some thong.

Unesco invites an artist to exhibit his sculptures and forces him to censor the private parts with knickers and thong

In reality the artist, precisely because of the issue of nudity, had proposed to Unesco to remain, on the Heritage Days, near the statues with a cloth and, if necessary, use it to hide their sex.

But the proposal was not accepted, Unesco wanted it to completely cover the private parts. To the controversy aroused by the decision, Unesco acknowledged the mistake, trying to justify the choice. But the criticism continues on social networks.

Come on, I spoil: the answer is yes!

We still live in a world where the well-meaning that some want to impose, associate with puritanism, is in the process of manufacturing ignorance. So if @UNESCO_fr gets involved, we can see that things are progressing insidiously. #slip #statue https://t.co/RxrWZpPUwC

— Philippe Méresse (@Philoulyon) October 27, 2019

No, but what a generation of fragile brothel!
You show them a nipple or a dick, and it's PLS for two weeks.
Will we have to put a sign on the works of art? Ban museums for minors? https://t.co/yTw0f8GH7u

— I am Camille (@CamilleVernier1) October 26, 2019

And the question arises: should we therefore censor any artistic nude with undergarments so as not to offend the sensibility? What is scandalous and inappropriate about sculptures of such beauty? Really absurd!