The Express included in the article censored versions of the aforementioned photographs, which are of Mann’s daughter and son and are titled “The Perfect Tomato” and “Popsicle Drips,” respectively.
On Dec. 26, The Express reported that a police report had been filed, and the outlet cited several public officials, including Tarrant County Judge Tim O’Hare, Tarrant County Republican Party Chairman Bo French, and House District 91 State Representative-elect David Lowe, as condemning the display of Mann’s photographs. On Jan. 6, The Express reported that “a warrant has been issued and executed” regarding some of the images in the exhibition.
“The images of children reported in the media at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth are deeply disturbing. Sexual exploitation of a minor, including under the guise of ‘art,’ should never be tolerated,” O’Hare posted on Facebook on Jan. 8. “I have full confidence in law enforcement to thoroughly investigate this matter and take appropriate action. I will always be committed to protecting the most vulnerable members of society, our children.”
In a statement emailed to The Art Newspaper, a museum spokesperson said, “An inquiry has been made concerning four artworks in the temporary exhibition ‘Diaries of Home.’ These have been widely published and exhibited for more than 30 years in leading cultural institutions across the country and around the world.”
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Sally Mann’s ‘Immediate Family’
Sally Mann first published the controversial photographs of her children, Emmett, Jessie, and Virginia, in 1992 in a collection titled, “Immediate Family.” The collection featured photos that Mann began taking of her children in 1984 (when they were approximately 6, 4 and 1) and was highly successful. The photographs were not only controversial because the children were naked in some of them but also because some of the images alluded to suicide, abuse, and poverty.
On Sept. 27, 1992, Richard B. Woodward interviewed Mann and described her work in a lengthy article for The New York Times titled, “The Disturbing Photography of Sally Mann.” At the time of the article’s publication, Emmett was 12, Jessie was 10, and Virginia was 7.
Mann explained to Woodward her perspective on her photographs, describing them as “sensual,” and rejecting the idea they are “sexual.”
“I don’t think of my children, and I don’t think anyone else should think of them, with any sexual thoughts,” she told Woodward. “I think childhood sexuality is an oxymoron.”
In the article, Woodward questioned the ethics of Mann’s work. “Has [Mann] knowingly put them at risk by releasing these pictures into a world where pedophilia exists?” he wrote. “Can young children freely give their consent for controversial portraits, even if—especially if—the artist is their parent?”
