The Age of Innocence (Hamilton book)
 Cover | |
| Author | David Hamilton |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Photography |
| Publisher | Aurum Press |
Publication date | 1995 |
| Pages | 220 |
| ISBN | 978-1854103048 |
The Age of Innocence is a 1995 photography and poetry book by David Hamilton. The book contains images of early-teen girls, often nude, accompanied by lyrical poetry. Images are in a boudoir setting[1] and photographed mainly in colour using a soft-focus filter, with some shots in black-and-white.
Legality
The book is available for sale on Amazon.com,[2][3] and in book shops around the world. Whilst it has not been deemed illegal in any jurisdiction, the nature of the pictures in this book have caused debate over what constitutes as child pornography[4] in both the US and the UK.
In 1998 Barnes & Noble was indicted on child pornography charges in the US states of Alabama and Tennessee. The charges focused on the books The Age of Innocence, as well as Radiant Identities by Jock Sturges. The charges were dropped in Tennessee after Barnes and Noble's agreed to move the books to an area that was less-accessible to children. The indictment in Alabama was dismissed by state officials after it was determined the books did not violate state law.[5]
In 2005 a man from Surrey was charged with being in possession of 19,000 images of children on his computer, including photos taken by Hamilton. The images were found by the court to be in the lowest indecency rating. Following the conviction W H Smith decided to stop selling The Age of Innocence from their website.[6] A spokesman for Hamilton stated "We are deeply saddened and disappointed by this, as David is one of the most successful art photographers the world has ever known. His books have sold millions. We have known for some time that the law in Britain and the US - our two biggest markets - is becoming tighter each year. But the fact remains that the courts still have to decide on each case."[6]
In 2010 a man was convicted of "level one" child pornography for owning four books, including The Age of Innocence as well as a book by Sally Mann, which he purchased from a bookstore in Walthamstow, London. His conviction was overturned on appeal, with the judge ruling that "the right way to deal with [such a] matter is by way of prosecuting the publisher or retailer — not the individual purchaser."[2][3]
References
- ^ Peres, Michael R (2007). The Focal Encyclopedia of Photography. Focal Press. ISBN 978-0240807409. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
- ^ a b Sheerer, Hans. "Child Pornography Conviction Tossed For Possessing Books Available on Amazon.com". Justice Denied. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ a b Oates, John (24 February, 2011). "Conviction overturned for abuse images bought from bookshop". The Register. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Schiltz, David A (2009). The Encyclopedia of American Law. Infobase Publishing. p. 82. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
- ^ Lane, III Frederick (2001). Obscene Profits: The Entrepreneurs of Pornography in the Cyber Age. Routledge. p. 126. ISBN 978-0415931038. Retrieved February 17, 2013.
- ^ a b Warmoll, Chris (14 July 2005). "Hamilton's naked girl shots ruled 'indecent'". Guardian.co.uk. London. Retrieved 15 February, 2005.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Text "Culture" ignored (help); Text "The Guardian" ignored (help)