Erotic Art: A Museum Quest

When I read Willy Volk’s post about the erotic images of Khajuraho in India, it got me thinking about erotic art and where to find it. Not that I’m planning on taking a world tour or anything, but it’s interesting to see how various cultures display erotica in museums and the place erotica has had in the arts throughout history. There are several places to visit where the aim is not to titillate specifically, but learn more about the human response to sexuality, beauty and, yes, of course, sex.

One place I came across is the Erotic Art Museum in Hamburg, Germany. I remember Hamburg to be more of an industrial looking place built back up after World War II. The museum looks as if the exhibits are superb. The website is entirely in German, but you can get an idea of what’s there. In one of the small photos across the top, it looks like they’ve acquired one of the wooden penises from that Japanese Penis Festival–or perhaps from the time of the Trojans? Just kidding about that. I would like to know what the origins are, though. If you click through the website you’ll find the virtual gallery that has larger images. Informative and slick.

For some odd reason, there is a cartoon figure of Santa Claus on the museum’s homepage. Since I can’t read German, I have no idea what that’s about. Is there secret side to Santa? Here’s a link to a rundown of erotic art museums in Europe.

Khajuraho and the Temples of Porn

Located in central India, Khajuraho is famous for its fabulously sculptured temples resembling huge, melting candles. More than 1000 years old, there are about 20 temples (out of an original 85) remaining today. In addition to their size, the temples — dedicated to Shiva, Vishnu, and Jain — are noted for depicting graphic sexual acts. Some of the images, in fact, are so explicit you might blush.

Although the Khajuraho Temples feature carvings both internally and externally, they do not contain sexual themes inside the Temples or near the deity. Although there are various hypotheses concerning why the temples were designed with such graphic depictions, there’s no doubt they’re gorgeous, intricate, and well-worth the visit — despite the relative difficulty in reaching the site.

Don’t have time to check out the Temples right now? I bet you DO have time to check out the galleries on Flickr and Sunya, as well as the trip report from Stephen and Klaudia.

Take notes. You might learn something.