Italian PM laid bare

Artist creates uproar with nude painting of Silvio Berlusconi and a female minister; another nude depicts the leader's wife

Italian PM laid bare

Artist creates uproar with nude painting of Silvio Berlusconi and a female minister; another nude depicts the leader's wife

The paintings, made from photographs of the three protagonists and painted bodies, are on view in the exhibition Art & Savonnerie, in Savona.

The real story

The ARTY Look: The painting of Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and Minister Mara Carfagna

Some time ago, Berlusconi stated on national television that he would marry Carfagna, a former topless model, if he wasn't already married.

This comment made Lario fume with anger and demanded a public apology from her husband.

After all of this, Berlusconi appointed Carfagna as a minister in his new government. Now, the couple has been united on a wall in a gallery.

'A tribute'

The works of art have been reproduced by most Italian and foreign media and have led to many comments while the artist has stated to regional newspaper Il Secolo XIX that his intention was a tribute to the Italian prime minister.

The first painting shows Berlusconi with wings approaching a nude Carfagna sitting on the grass in a romantic atmosphere.

It is an image of Berlusconi superposed on the body of an angel with the genital area covered by a piece of cloth, beside another photo of Carfagna's head, that crowns a body "taken from an artist of the XIX Century".

The second painting shows Lario, with abundant breasts that come out to the forefront, over a group of naked women inspired by Neoclassicism.

Panseca, who considers the uproar over the paintings "crazy", has invited Berlusconi to "have a good laugh" and to make an offer to buy the painting.

"If he does it, I will not keep one Euro, and we will send it all to Abruzzo", where this past April 6 an earthquake killed 295 persons. "Let him put a price, whatever he offers will be fine. It will be the best way to finish this story," the painter said.

Obama shirtless on magazine cover

The May issue of Washingtonian has recycled the infamous photograph of a shirtless Barack Obama to illustrate one reason why people "love living here: Our new neighbor is hot."

The picture was snapped as the Obamas vacationed in Hawaii in December.

Garrett Graff, the editor-at-large, said the idea came during a staff discussion about the Obamas arrival and the "celebrity aspect that has brought energy to the city and the attention of the paparazzi".

"The whole world is looking to Washington now in a way we haven't seen in years," he said.

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