"Art can never exist without naked beauty displayed." - William Blake: English poet, painter, and printmaker.

With 42 days of Plinthing already behind us, 'One & Other' will soon be reaching its half way point in the project. As a Plinth applicant waiting in the wings, I've visited the Plinth several times over the weeks and seen some great Plinther action. It's impossible not to enjoy the buzzing atmosphere around the Plinth in Trafalgar Square, including overhearing lively debate on Antony Gormley's Fourth Plinth Art.

There has also been equally spirited debate here on the blog and in the media; countless topics of discussion created as a result of Plinthers' activities. Including, recently, the subject of nudity.

Plinther Simon caused a stir when he stripped off at 1am last Wednesday, only to be told to cover up after the police received a complaint from the public. As crowds cheered Simon on, he became a symbol of the right to freedom of expression on the Plinth, even inspiring a poem. He also ruffled a few feathers on Twitter - here are some tweets of displeasure:

@notfortoffee They shouldn't interfere! The police are there for safety reasons, not to censor the plinth! #oneandother

@Dave_Piper If 1000 folk can cycle naked around London for WNBR, why not a lone nude on a plinth? #oneandother

@notfortoffee Someone said "nudity is not illegal, it only becomes a problem when someone complains." So: Who complained? #oneandother

The complainer may not have been in the majority on this occasion, but they have made many of us ponder on where we stand on public nudity in 2009.

We've come a long way from previous attitudes; the Victorians couldn't bare the thought of the human body on public display. Objects that might resemble human anatomy were covered up by the prudish Victorians; piano legs were fitted with trousers, lest the shapely wooden legs caused impure thoughts. Perhaps public nudity as a taboo is a hangover from this repressive era?

Some think that the complaint against Simon was an overreaction. Simon wasn't arrested, whereas a 'Streaker' at a football match probably would be. So the intention behind an act of public nudity matters to people. Indeed, Simon was acting in the name of Art.

Does this mean that 2009 Britain is free and easy with public nudity if committed in the name of Art, in the spirit of artistic expression and celebration of the human body?

Like Simon's challenge to convention last Wednesday, there  have been similar challengers in the past. In the 1930's, The Windmill Theatre in London wanted to follow in the footsteps of the Moulin Rouge, Paris, by bringing the public nude to the people. The Lord Chamberlain was convinced to pass a law that permitted public nudity to be legal so long as the performer behaved like a motionless "living statue" - a phrase often referred to Plinthers! The living statues of the Windmill Theatre were known as the "Windmill Girls" and you can learn all about them in the film "Mrs Henderson Presents", starring Dame Judi Dench.

Perhaps there is a motionless nude Plinther out there, waiting to dedicate their one hour to an eighty-seven year-old bygone law?

The question of the boundaries of censorship has been hotly debated over recent decades, with one pioneer becoming a household name: Mary Whitehouse, a formidable activist in the 1960's who launched relentless "clean up TV" campaigns. Perhaps the complaint to the police about Simon's nudity was made by a relative of Mary Whitehouse: we may never know.

The Artist and the Nude go back a long way in Art history. In centuries past, nudity in painting and sculpture was only acceptable in a non-contemporary context; such as displaying a scene from Greek or Roman antiquity. In modern day, the life model is commonplace in an art class. But even this tradition fell under the glare of censorship this year when Channel 4's programme Life Class received dozens of complaints from viewers about the nudes filmed in art classes.

The UK has a long way to go to catch up with more nudity-friendly countries in the world.

It is widely accepted that airbrushed photos of celebrity bodies in the media do not promote healthy self-esteem; perhaps we have a duty to bring the human body, warts and all, into the public spotlight?

I leave you with a photo of a favourite recent Plinther who dressed up as a CCTV camera - letting us know that as we stare at the Plinth, the Plinth stares back!

CCTV Plinther