Art, self-promotion or defaming culture?

Although there have never been any set criteria to define the boundary between art and pornography, art depicting the human form in the name of "beauty" should, in the eyes of most people, at least not excessively offend or challenge the ethical and moral bottom line of society.

So, when a set of photos showing a nude female model straddling a marble dragon head in the Forbidden City were widely circulated on the Internet, the "art" in the eyes of the photographer was by no means recognized by others, who took a more prurient interest in the photos. Aside from straddling the stone dragon head, photos also showed the naked woman striking suggestive poses in the rest of the palace.

In response to public outcry, Wang Dong, the photographer who first posted the series of photographs online on May 17, said that he "did not intend to deliberately defame any culture or civilization".