Maiev Shadowsong said:
You're the one missing the point.
No need to get defensive. I never said anyone else was wrong-- I said it depended on interpretation.
Nudity = not a problem.
They don't want an image where she happens to be nude though. They want to *see* nudity. They want her exposed. They want to see skin. They want the artist to make it known she has no clothes on. Her nakedness isn't par for course like it would be expected in the bath. Her figure isn't mundane. They go out of their way to demand her body be seen.
While she's killing herself.
And that doesn't scream 'sex' to me.
I know I'm rather an unusual individual in these things, but to be honest I don't think it's going to scream 'sex' to very many people (male or female) at all.
I imagine that in other people it will conjure the same sort of thoughts as in me. Of people having breakdowns in showers, crying to themselves with guns to their heads. Or individuals standing nude before mirrors judging themselves to death. Or a soldier regretting the person he became in a war, shedding their uniform, and then killing themselves.
Again, consider these: "Draw for me a woman killing herself in the bath."
"Draw for me a woman killing herself in the bath. Make sure she's naked."
Guess which one is seedy.
The second, of course, but the comparison you're making is not as apt as it first seems. Slight re-arrangements of words completely change the meaning of the sentence. The textual medium is missing tone and inflection and body language. He didn't write it, he said it, and he didn't say it like that:
Here?s how to enter:
Read the rules & regulations listed below to confirm that you are eligible to enter DC Entertainment?s Open Talent Search and agree to the terms and conditions.
Read the following script page and give us your original artistic interpretation of what those four panels should look like on a single page:
PAGE 15
4 panels
PANEL 1
Harley is on top of a building, holding a large DETACHED cellphone tower in her hands as lightning is striking just about everywhere except her tower. She is looking at us like she cannot believe what she is doing. Beside herself. Not happy.
PANEL 2
Harley is sitting in an alligator pond, on a little island with a suit of raw chicken on, rolling her eyes like once again, she cannot believe where she has found herself. We see the alligators ignoring her.
PANEL 3
Harley is sitting in an open whale mouth, tickling the inside of the whale?s mouth with a feather. She is ecstatic and happy, like this is the most fun ever.
PANEL 4
Harley sitting naked in a bathtub with toasters, blow dryers, blenders, appliances all dangling above the bathtub and she has a cord that will release them all. We are watching the moment before the inevitable death. Her expression is one of ?oh well, guess that?s it for me? and she has resigned herself to the moment that is going to happen.
If we were to read it out loud, the naked is more of a throwaway clarification. If it were this:
"Harley sitting, naked, in a bathtub with toasters"
or
"Harley sitting in a bathtub with toasters, naked."
I'd be more inclined to judge his intent the same way you do. To me, it seems like they want the tub to be empty, so they wanted to clarify that she should still be nude even though there's no water in there.
And what I'm saying is that their request is not out of desire for a picture to whack off to, but to express a more nuanced personal crisis through the artistic medium.
Perhaps you imagine an overweight man lecherously making the request for this picture, but imagine if you will a member of the beret-wearing intelligentsia making the same statement. Or if it had been written by a woman?
