well, hello there.

Have you seen the latest Equinox ad? Apparently folks up in Boston don’t care for it very much. But honestly, I don’t see what all the fuss is about. Sure, most nuns don’t wear that much make up and the lighting is lousy. One wants lots of natural light for something like that. Still, there’s no need to take such a dislike to it.

What’s that? Oh! It’s the whole nuns and nude thing they didn’t like! I see - well, I’ll take another look.  Actually, Equinox wanted to get another city’s opinion so they’ve brough the ad to Gotham. From now until Friday, those of us in NY can check out the poster in super-large format at 50th & Broadway and 19th & Broadway and Greenwich Ave. Or you could click here for a larger version to peruse in the comfort of your own home.

In the meantime, the battle lines are drawn. The Church says Equinox is “exploiting and mocking and sexualizing Catholic religious imagery” but I can’t see how. He doesn’t look like an icon (he had got a whiff of a David about him though) and frankly those don’t look like any nuns I’ve ever seen.

Equinox says one person’s exploitation is another one’s “personal motivation and fantasy” and besides, “throughout history the body has been considered a form of art.” It’s hard to argue that point though I’d like to go on record that there are plenty of times I’ve encountered nudity with nothing whatsoever artistic about it. Like last week when I - what? Oh, right. Back on message.

So - what is art?

1. Is he art?
2. Would he look more like art stretched out on a canvas?
3. Would I even have the brain cells to wonder such things if I were lucky enough to have him stretched out on a canvas?
4. Does anyone have a canvas?

Let us ponder the meaning of art and the value of this lad in comparison to say - a Jackson Pollack painting. Hmmm . . . I wonder how he’d look spattered with edible finger paints? What? Oh right - sorry. Don’t know what’s gotten into me.

So, what do you all think. Good? Bad? Cheap and cheesy ploy for attention? Or do you actually look at those abs and think “Damn, I really need to get to the gym?”