Nude photos of 10-yr old Brooke Shields displayed in London gallery

A London art museum is under fire for their decision to display a nude photo of a 10-year-old Brooke Shields at an exhibition.

Critics and child advocates claimed the picture - which is being displayed at Britain's Tate Modern museum, would attract paedophiles to the gallery.

The 1983 image, titled 'Spiritual America,' is actually a picture of a photograph taken in 1975 by artist Gary Cross. It shows the young actress completely nude, covered in oil and wearing heavy make-up - looking directly at the camera.

The photograph was taken after the artist hired Shields to pose as a model and is said to have been done with her mother's consent.

In 1981, Shields lost a legal battle to buy back the negatives.

The exhibition which opens on October 1, also features huge sexually explicit images and works made from the pages of pornographic magazines.

UPDATE: Metropolitan police in London have removed the photograph from the Tate Gallery today on the grounds that it violated child pornography laws.