Boobies & Privates – Should Your Children View Nude Photography Art [NSFW]

After reading the title, I am certain you have already formulated an opinion, not only of the subject matter, but of me as the writer. Which is cool. Honestly.

I was raised in a fairly religious home in rural Appalachia. Nothing special, just your typical home where television, carnivals, jewelry, and Sunday afternoon bike rides were sins; where “gosh” and “darn” were considered egregious profanity; and where being rebellious constituted listening to the Rich Mullins or parting your hair on the opposite side (essentially).

The fact that we were sent to a small, private school that taught nearly-identical doctrines didn’t help much, either. In school, topics such as sex, nudity, and human biology were often regarded as evil and frequently accompanied by threats of Hell fires and eternal damnation. To give a little perspective, our tenth-grade biology teacher skipped over the chapters discussing the scientific principles of human reproduction because it was too graphic of a subject for us to discuss in an open forum.

So, to say we lived a sheltered upbringing would be a conservative statement of the truth, but I do not fault my parents for raising us in the way that they saw best. As a parent myself, I am a firm advocate for parental rights in raising your children however you see fit, whether conservative, liberal, or right down the middle. As such, I believe it is our responsibility as parents to mould and shape our children’s perceptions of the human body, sex, and sexuality, and art, just like media, can, without a doubt, play a substantial role in a positive or negative outcome.

Is it right (for you)?

No, this is not a bloody dissertation on religion or morality or universal relativism…save that conversation for a time when you have an overwhelmingly-sadistic desire to infuriate a room of adults at your monthly PTA meeting. Such a discussion produces answers as varied as those given by my coworkers as to why they arrive late on any given day, essentially rendering such debate useless.

This is also not a thesis arguing for or against principles of nudity in general. Heaven knows this has been debated, especially within certain circles, more heavily than most other topics.

When I say, “Determine if it’s right,” I simply mean, “Is allowing your children (or, perhaps, not disallowing them) to see nude photography something you think is permissible?”  (And, no, I’m not talking about sitting down and expressly showing them collections of nude work.)  In many parts of the world, this is not even an issue. But, particularly in America, this can be quite a controversial topic. For whatever reasons, whether they be religious, personal, or otherwise, is this something with which you are comfortable?

For some families, naturism is the name of the game with nudity and the human body simply being another ordinary part of any ordinary day from infancy on up. For others, this is not the case. So, in your household, is nudity within art permissible at all? If so, to what level?

Nudity has been incorporated into art virtually since the creation of art itself. Venus of Willendorf, one of the most well-known examples of Paleolithic sculpture, is a prime example that nudity is not an indecent creation of the modern mind. In fact, many believe that the incorporation of nudity, particularly female nudity, into artistic works was a way to celebrate femininity and fertility, paying homage to the important and completely normal functions of human biology. We also see nudity making grandiose appearances throughout the artistically-popular Greek and Renaissance periods.

Why are we okay with our children going on field trips to museums and viewing ancient works for what they are yet cringe at the mention of nudity in photography?

What’s Permissible?

For most parents, I believe this is what it boils down to. Out of all the possible examples of nude aart (or photography), which will you allow your children to view?

This is when the word “pornography” starts getting thrown around, often unfairly. The human body in itself is not pornographic, and, often it is the artist’s (or, in this case specifically, photographer’s) intentions which determine the outcome of decency within an image. Two naked bodies intertwined could be a beautiful work of art; they could also be anything but beautiful (in the true sense) or a work of art at all! A naked breast could symbolize nurturing motherhood and femininity, or it could also represent vulgarity in the same sense that seemingly-benign words can be usurped and twisted.

If we shun something entirely, simply because it can also exist on a debase and degenerate plane, are we not doing our children a disservice? Are we not, then, teaching them to adopt the same, twisted perspective as those from whom we are trying to shield them, thereby encouraging the belief that all is evil?

While our family doesn’t subscribe to naturism, nudity and bodies have simply been a part of our lives. Coming from the conservative backgrounds in which my wife and I were both raised, we did not want our children to be brought up with a fear or twisted perception of the human form, and, as such, have aspired to keep an openness in that regard and maintain a nonchalant attitude towards the entire subject. I often joke that, at any given time, any member of our family may be found running around naked in our yard. It’s not evil, it’s not perverted…it just…is, and always has been.

Yes, my children have sometimes seen nude photography.  We don’t specifically show it to them, but, if and when they do see it, we don’t freak out about it. Although, as a boudoir photographer whose purpose is to create imagery as a gift from one lover to another, there is that segment of imagery that does border on the pornographic, my raw and erotic work (so, basically my entire boudoir portfolio), that we do not feel is appropriate for them at all (obviously). But, I have no issue with them seeing purely artistic or whimsical work for what it is any more so than I have a problem with them hanging out with their mother sunbathing topless in the backyard on a bright, summer day.

In the end…

…is there a clear-cut answer on the subject, a one-size-fits-all solution that parents the world over can readily adopt for their own homes? No. These decisions rest in the hands of the individual parents. But, I have found that simple, open communication and not treating the human form as a thing to be feared has bred for my children a very balanced view of who and what we are: simple, mortal flesh.