National Portrait Gallery - Panayiotis Lamprou's Portrait of his British Wife

CLICK TO VIEW THE IMAGE

So the National Portrait Gallery has its portrait prize shortlist up and Panayiotis Lamprou's portrait of his wife with no knickers on is the one that catches the eye - mainly because only a detail is shown, and then you have to click on the image to get the full image in all its shocking glory. That extra clicking seems to add a dimension to the picture, to give it some weird peepshow feel, almost like one of those old pens with a picture of a girl in a bikini on, but when you turn the pen upside down, hey presto, the bikini disappears.

The Guardian has a short commentary. Especially interesting are the Guardian comments. These muse on the Bristishness of the artist's wife, the omelette pan to her side, the tip of her pelvis, the shape of her genitals and the fact that she is shaven, and what will happen when her children see it - the last point I'm not sure I get because I'm presuming she's not going to be teaching her children about the the shamefulness and disgrace of nudity - it might be something a bit more relaxed and healthy than that. I'm with the Get over it school of thought - it's not porn (but once it might have been) and it's not that good a picture. Or is it? I'm not sure anymore.

And then is she really British? British? And if not, why is he putting that into the title (and wouldn't English work better)?

2010 Best Animals that Touch your Heart

The photo released in March, 2010 shows a five-year-old pet husky named "Ice", who has been popular on the internet after his images dressed as Superman were posted online

A panda cub is seen in this picture which released in March, 2010

National Geographic photographer Robert B. Haas captured this aerial photo of a flock of flamingo birds shaped like a giant flamingo in November, 2010.

An exhausted oil-covered brown pelican tries to climb over an oil containment boom along Queen Bess Island Pelican Rookery, 3 miles northeast of Grand Isle, Louisiana June 5, 2010. Wildlife experts are working to rescue birds from the rookery which has been affected by BP's Gulf of Mexico oil spill, and transporting them to the Fort Jackson Rehabilitation Center.

Two pet dogs are seen in Lipsia 2010 trad show in Leipzig, Germany on 18 October, 2010.

Photographer Eric Lefranc caught this polar bear cub and his mum on camera as they found themselves stranded 12 miles from land after a melting iceberg started to drift in Svalbard, Norway in March, 2010.

A dolphin is seen in SeaWorld Orlando in Orlando, US, February, 2010.

Two year-old octopus Paul, the so-called "octopus oracle" predicts Spain's victory in their 2010 World Cup semi-final soccer match against Germany by choosing a mussel, from a glass box decorated with the Spanish national flag instead of a glass box with the German flag, at the Sea Life Aquarium in the western German city of Oberhausen July 6, 2010.

A dog shows off its surfing skill. This photo is released in December, 2010.

British media "The Sun" released a group of photo entitled "The world's top 10 fattest animals" in September 2010. In this photo is world's fattest seabird.