Art once banned for being obscene is on show at a special exhibition.
Paintings by Cyprus-born artist Stass Paraskos are featured at the Tetley Arts Centre in Hunslet Road, Leeds, until October 9.
They were first shown at Leeds College of Art in 1966.
But following a complaint by a school teacher, Paraskos was arrested and charged with obscenity.
Despite major figures in the international art world coming to Paraskos’s defence – including Sir Herbert Read, Quentin Bell, Norbert Lynton and Adrian Stokes – the prosecution was successful and Paraskos was found guilty.
As a result, the offending paintings were banned from being shown in public.
Now, to mark the 50th anniversary of the controversial trial, the Tetley Arts Centre has recreated the original exhibition.
It has brought together many of the original paintings, as well as documents from the court case.
“I don’t think people will be offended by them today,” says Dr Michael Paraskos, the artist’s son who is a lecturer at the City and Guilds of London Art School.
“But in 1966 things were different. Seeing this show is a good way to understand how much Britain has changed in less than a lifetime.”
