Nudity in kids’ art books

I’m new here, so I hope I’m not offending anyone. 🙂 I do believe that everyone has the right to decide what they feel is acceptable for their children. However, am I really alone in thinking that censoring nudity from kids is.. odd? It had honestly never occurred to me until seeing this thread that someone might find works of art objectionable to children because of nudity. The human body is beautiful, that is why it has been a subject of artists. I don’t know, maybe its just a difference in the way people see things, I just personally can’t imagine shielding my kids from something just because it displays nudity. My son is only 2, so everything is normal to him.. and my daughter is 6 and everything has always been presented as normal, so that’s how she sees it as well. She is very inquisitive and has asked many questions and probably knows more about the human body than some adults at this point. lol  We have been to museums and seen art that contains nudity and its never even provoked a reaction from her.. because its just a human body. Am I missing something? I’m not trying to offend anyone, I’m truly curious about what is offensive about nudity and why some might feel that children should be shielded from it.  Those who do try to shield them from it, do you do that in your homes as well? I think between changing diapers and going potty and everyone bathing and showering, plus breastfeeding, my kids are pretty much exposed to seeing the human body regularly. Questions come up, they get answered, no big deal. Just wondering how such things are handled in families where children are shielded from nudity? Honestly curious, no judgements. 🙂

Jami

What a refreshing reply, Sonja! Our family is of the same opinion as you on this topic. A Sharpie marker is used a lot in our home!

I cut a white index card to size then tape it over the picture (Scotch Magic Tape works best because it’s not glossy so it doesn’t really stand out).  The card is thick enough that nothing shows through and it almost looks like a blank space on the page.  If there are no redeeming pictures on a page with nudity I will glue them together.  Otherwise I try to salvage by covering the nude picture.

I also do as someone mentioned earlier and print out pictures from the AO Yahoo group.  We display them in a frame for a week or so then add it to our Artist Book (a 3-ring binder) in a sheet protector so they can be taken out and displayed again if desired.  Our Artist book is getting filled with pictures they’ve studied and that I know are appropriate.

Heather

I totally agree with Sonya as well, and want to add this scripture that I always keep in mind about nakedness: Isaiah 47:2-3 says, “Take the millstones, and grind meal: uncover thy locks, make bare the leg, uncover the thigh, pass over the rivers. Thy nakedness shall be uncovered, yea, thy shame shall be seen: I will take vengeance, and I will not meet thee as a man.”

There is also scripture about not uncovering your relatives nakedness. In our home my husband makes sure not to let our daughters see his nakedness. They see mine because they run into the bathroom uninvited, but I do ask them to leave until I am finished getting dressed. It’s out of respect and privacy.

Yes, the human body is made beautifully by God however it’s only for our spouse to enjoy not others.

So our family doesn’t view nakedness in art. I haven’t seen any in any books we’ve bought or checked out so far. I usually have the art books put up so they don’t get torn up. Or I print pics from online to display.

For those who do feel it’s odd to not view nudity in art or in the home, are you offended when people don’t dress modestly in public? I feel it’s the same thing–that people don’t cover themselves enough in public and their breasts, belly, thigh etc shouldn’t be on display in public as well as naked statues/paintings of naked people.

Tara