Unblocking naked Venus: Facebook OKs museum nudes after all
JEAN-LUC MABY/MUSEE DEPARTEMENTAL ARLES ANTIQUE & LOUVRE MUSEUM VIA ASSOCIATED PRESS
A bronze “Statue of a captive,” left, dating from the first century B.C., as seen on Monday. A marble statue of “Venus of Arles” from late 1st century A.D., as seen on Monday. A Geneva art museum said that Facebook had prohibited it from promoting an upcoming exhibit entitled “Caesar and the Rhone” on the social media platform with an image of the statue, citing concerns about nudity.
GENEVA >> It seems Facebook can be friends with a topless Venus after all.
The social media giant said today it mistakenly blocked a museum in Switzerland from using images of two statues — a marble Venus and a bronze of a nude, kneeling man — to promote an upcoming exhibit.
The Museum of Art and History in Geneva had protested Facebook’s citing of nudity concerns to keep the images off. The two statues are part of the exhibit.
Facebook said in an email to The Associated Press: “The ad was inadvertently rejected and is now available again on Facebook. We apologize for the mistake.”
The museum says it has been preparing another promotional piece for its “Caesar and the Rhone” exhibit, which focuses on Caesar’s conquests in the first century B.C.
