art or porn?

Dr. Charlie Glickman, adult sex educator and editor of Good Vibrations Magazine, posed the question this week whether or not black and white makes a sexual image more artistic whereas color makes it porn.

Rhiannon commented to Charlie's post that, in her opinion, "in a black and white photo, the absence of light makes the images–whether it's a basket of fruit or a half naked woman–look a lot more intimate, as though it’s a moment stolen from a pair of lovers rather than a woman standing in front of a possibly horny, sex crazed film crew." I agree with her that black and white pictures tend to have a more intimate feel. But as I commented in my response to Charlie's post, I further think that black and white pictures have a softer, more sensuous quality. When compared to pictures we often see in mainstream porn, which are often shot in harsh or unprofessional lighting—and with digital cameras, which I feel produces an image with a more rigid appearance—black and white pictures tend to have a more subdued quality. Which might give these the intimate, sensuous look that we tend to associate with black and white. And also that artsy look, satisfying our desire for an elevated experience that oscillates between the physical and the intellectual. However, professional lighting in either case will elevate the production value and blur that line.

What stands out to me in the "good" new porn by women that I’m interested in, is not just its progressive content, but the quality of the image, which is of high artistic value even when shot with digital in color. In mass-produced mainstream porn, on the other hand, the picture often becomes sterile.