The Japanese want “put some clothes on David”

FLORENCE, ITALY – Giant reproductions of Michelangelo’s David and the Venus de Milo are raising eyebrows in the Japanese town of Okuizumo because of their oversize nude bodies.

The five-meter-high statues, sculpted by Italian artist Enzo Pasquini, have led to a wave of complaint letters calling on town officials to “put some pants on the David” and “put a blouse on the Venus de Milo”.

The latter is positioned outside a playground and “the children are afraid,” as one angry parent put it. Mayor Katsuhiro Inoue issued a statement to his 17,000 townspeople, arguing that the statues are “a great educational opportunity for children to see first class art up close”.