Erotic Art

Once, when Picasso, in the evening of his life, was asked about the difference between art and eroticism, his pensive answer was: “But—there is no difference.” Instead, as others warned about eroticism, Picasso warned about the experience of art: “Art is never chaste; one should keep it away from all innocent ignoramuses. People insufficiently prepared for art, should never be allowed close to art. Yes, art is dangerous. If it is chaste, it is not art.”The term ‘Erotic Art’ is muddied by a miasma of ambiguous terms. Art and pornography, sexuality and sensuality, obscenity and morality are all involved to such an extent that it seems almost impossible to reach an objective definition, which is not unusual in the history of art. How is it possible to speak of erotic art?Hans-Jürgen Döpp