INNSBRUCK, Austria (AP) — An Austrian anti-pornography activist wants officials in the Alpine city of Innsbruck to take down a large crucifix bearing a sculpture of a naked Jesus Christ.
Martin Humer, who gained notoriety last year after he painted part of a statue of a nude Mozart and stuck feathers on it, is pressuring authorities to remove the crucifix from a public square where it has been displayed for 20 years, public broadcaster ORF reported Thursday.
Humer, an 82-year-old former photographer, said he and about 100 supporters were organizing a protest for Friday.
Innsbruck Mayor Hilde Zach dismissed the fuss and said she would refuse to remove the crucifix, insisting it is a work of art and is in no way pornographic.
In March 2006, the public prosecutor’s office in Salzburg charged Humer and an accomplice with vandalism for defacing the “Homage to Mozart” statue with red and green enamel and covering it with white feathers.