Sir Elton's Photography Not 'Child Porn'

A photograph owned by Sir Elton John, which was seized from an art exhibition amid claims that it breached child pornography laws, has been declared as not indecent by the Crown Prosecution Service.

The photograph - 'Klara and Edda Belly-Dancing' by American photographer Nan Goldin - was seized by Northumbria Police from the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead in September, a day before it was due to go on public display.

The photograph was one of 149 images, which made up Goldin's 'Thanksgiving' installation. The rest went on display at the gallery as planned.

The CPS had first considered the image in 2001 and decided that it was not indecent.

Kerrie Bell, head of the CPS Northumbria South Unit, said: "In order to prove that the photograph is indecent we must be satisfied that contemporary standards of propriety are so different now to what they were in 2001, that it is more likely than not a court will conclude that the photograph is indecent. I am not satisfied that is the case.

"Even if the photograph was now considered to be indecent, a defendant would be able to raise a legitimate defence, given that the photograph was distributed for the purposes of display in a contemporary art gallery after having been deemed not to be indecent by the earlier investigation.

"Accordingly, I am of the opinion that the evidence is insufficient to justify proceedings for offences of possession or distribution of an indecent photograph."

A statement published on Sir Elton's website at the time the photograph was seized said: "The photograph exists as part of the installation as a whole and has been widely published and exhibited throughout the world."

The statement also said that the image had previously been exhibited in a number of cities in Europe and the US "without any objections of which we are aware".

(KMcA)