STATEMENT OF THE WEEK

We don't normally use our beloved blog to make political statements but this week we feel compelled. The ladies of HML would like to come out in public support of Australian artist Bill Henson. Yes we do find his work confronting, sometimes distasteful and always challenging. We don't find his work pornographic or exploitative. Adolescence is a troubling and sinister time even more so now when female role models are train wrecks and Australia's Next Top Model is on in prime time. We've reached a very dark point in our cultural history when it is acceptable for police officers to go marching through art galleries. Once these images hit Today Tonight they were so out of context we were almost defenseless in the face of uneducated public scrutiny. This is why we've chosen not to put one of the contentious images on the blog - it's not the right context for viewing the work.We encourage you to write, as we have, to our lame Arts Minister who has been completely silent on the subject. 'Beds are Burning' indeed....