Courage on display as show debuts

© St. Petersburg Times,
published October 29, 2001

Steve Spina is my new hero.

The man who refuses to be cowed by controversy dared to bring the series of paintings depicting the cycle of domestic violence to his town after county officials banned some of them from the Dade City courthouse because of one complaint.

The reason? Partial nudity.

"I just thought this was something we can't put our head in the sand about," said Spina, who wrote stories for the Zephyrhills News before becoming city manager. After he read newspaper stories about county officials' knee-jerk reaction, he was concerned.

"I thought, 'Just mind your own business' and then I read another article and I thought, 'You know, I should probably step forward,' " he said.

In this case, Spina should be commended for sticking his nose in, or his neck out, as the case may be.

He knew the paintings were going to be shown at a gallery in Tampa, but he figured, rightly, that many people in east Pasco wouldn't see them.

And they are worth seeing.

The series, by a Land O' Lakes artist who goes by MeloD, portrays what a domestic violence victim goes through before finally becoming a survivor.

The woman in the paintings is nude to denote the vulnerability and indignity that come with being battered. The poses are tasteful and in most of them, only arms and legs are visible. Not much there that couldn't be seen on a beach or in a Victoria's Secret ad.

The two most explicit paintings, one of a woman embracing her new love, and the other of a woman in the throes of passion, were left at home. The artist brought only postcard-size images of them.

So why the huge fuss?

When it comes to women's issues, sexuality usually is involved.

And we live in a culture that has tremendous hangups about sexuality, especially women's. While the term "phallic symbol" is routinely used in our vocabulary, and race cars get sponsored by Viagra, female sexual imagery is seen as shocking.

"Nobody wants to talk about breasts and vaginas," said Penny Morrill, executive director of Sunrise of Pasco, the agency that serves east Pasco domestic violence victims.

And our hangups don't even make sense.

This is a society in which kids are allowed to play violent video games and watch movies with scantily clad, D-cup sized beauties who get chopped up by lunatics wearing hockey masks. Yet we stare disapprovingly at a woman discreetly nursing an infant in a shopping mall.

Last year, transit companies in California censored a breast cancer ad campaign because its posters featured bare-chested models with mastectomy scars.

"We will not run ads that anyone will find offensive," a spokeswoman for the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority told the Associated Press.

Breast Cancer Fund founder Andrea Martin, whose mastectomy scars were used in the pictures, asked why similar concern was not shown for those who might support the ads.

"What about those who think this is a positive thing? Too bad," she said.

MeloD's paintings can definitely be seen as positive. When they were shown in Tampa, she said, viewers got teary-eyed. Strangers started telling strangers their stories about overcoming abuse.

Some influential folks in Dade City found them worthwhile.

When the paintings were put up in the courthouse, the artist said she looked up at Sheriff Bob White and saw tears in his eyes. He and state Rep. Ken Littlefield had their photos taken with the artist in front of one of the paintings that later was taken down.

The paintings necessarily depict sexuality because it is part of the cycle of abuse. Batterers often use sex to control and humiliate their victims.

And the last two paintings show a healthy, committed relationship based on love and trust -- a victory for a former victim. If you look at the couple's fingers, you'll even see wedding bands.

Granted, this might not be something parents want their 4-year-olds to see in a government building. And the county's sensitivity to those concerns is understandable. However, rather than ordering their removal, officials should have considered moving the offending images to another area out of the public eye. That way, children could be shielded, while those who wanted to see the entire series were free to do so.

Spina has the right idea. The barracks will draw only those interested in seeing the paintings, so he expects no complaints.

The theme for Domestic Violence Month this year was "Domestic violence, it is your business."

Fortunately for Pasco residents, Steve Spina made it his.

-- Lisa Buie is the editor of the central/east edition of the Pasco Times. You can reach her at (813) 909-4604 or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 4604.

If you go

The Domestic Violence Series is slated to run for 10 days at the barracks (Nov. 5 through Nov. 16). Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Saturday. Admission is free. For information, contact Steve Spina at (813) 780-0011, or Penny Morrill, executive director of Sunrise of Pasco County, at (352) 521-3358.

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