SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police will not prosecute one of the nation's top artists for pornography after they shut down his exhibition of naked adolescent girls, sparking a nationwide debate on art and pornography.
Police said on Friday they would not lay charges againstBill Henson after Australia's Classification Board, which ratesfilms, videos, exhibitions and books, declared his photographs"mild and justified".
"Police did receive complaints and this has been a matterof significant public concern and debate," police commanderCatherine Burn said in a statement. "The advice given to us isthat a successful prosecution was unlikely."
Police raids on Henson's Sydney exhibition in May sparked aheated debate, fuelled by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd describingthe photographs as revolting, over what is art and what ispornography.
Hollywood actress Cate Blanchett and 42 other leading artsfigures signed an open letter critical of Rudd's comment,saying it would encourage censorship of the arts and damageAustralia's cultural reputation.
(Reporting by Michael Perry; Editing by Valerie Lee)
