Nude photo leak: Who’s naked, who’s not?
Some celebs admit they were hacked while others scream ‘That’s not me!’
Leaked nude images of Jennifer Lawrence and Kate Upton hacked and posted online over the weekend will be featured in an upcoming art exhibit at The Cory Allen Contemporary Art Showroom in St. Petersburg, Fla.
The images will be included in an collection titled “No Delete” by artist XVALA.
“This show has been in the works for about two years now,” Cory Allen told FOX411. “When this came out…about Jennifer Lawrence [and] Kate Upton, it was the prefect dialogue. It was about invasion of privacy—and [the artist] thought it would be the perfect time to add these as a final installment to [the collection].”
Reps for Lawrence and Upton have been adamant that they have legal action planned for anyone who spreads the photos around.
"The authorities have been contacted and will prosecute anyone who posts the stolen photos of Jennifer Lawrence,” a rep for the Oscar-winner said. Meanwhile, Upton’s publicist threatened: “We intend to pursue anyone disseminating or duplicating these illegally obtained images to the fullest extent possible."
So how does Allen play to get away with displaying the photos?
He told FOX411 the images of Lawrence and Upton were just a small part of a much larger exhibit about privacy in today’s society. Plus, he said they’re art, not photos.
“We’re not posting them… and we don’t see them as photos. [The artist] sees it as art,” Allen said. “He’s not trying to exploit anything. He’s basically just mirroring who we are today. I think if he was really concerned and too worried about the legality side of it, it would challenge the integrity of the art.”
He added that he thinks the fact that the gallery is not sharing the pictures is key.
“We’re not sharing the photos; we’re not posting them; we’re not trying to promote that aspect of it. He is creating the artwork from these images. There are also other images [in the exhibit].”
This isn’t the first time artist XVALA has used controversial celebrity images in his work. In 2007, he used the memorable photo of Britney Spears shaving her head as part of an exhibit and in 2011 he plastered Scarlett Johansson’s leaked nude pictures around Los Angeles with the words “Fear Google” covering her body.
Reps for Lawrence and Upton did not immediately return FOX411’s request for comment.
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