The book aimed to treat children as rational beings capable of understanding their own bodies, rather than as creatures to be protected from knowledge. Content and Structure
The discussion surrounding Zeig Mal! and Will McBride highlights the ongoing dialogue between artistic freedom, child development theories, and societal boundaries. The book serves as a historical marker of a specific cultural moment when traditional norms were being challenged. Today, it is primarily studied as a significant, albeit polarizing, chapter in the history of educational publishing and the evolution of how society discusses human development. Share public link
Zeig Mal! Will McBride: The Controversial Masterpiece of Sex Education
Tell you more about (like his work for Twen magazine).
The book is structured around conversations and visual representations. It covers topics rarely discussed in educational contexts at the time, including: Anatomy of male and female bodies. Pubertal changes and menstruation. Masturbation and sexual pleasure. The sexual act. Contraception and pregnancy.
The controversy escalated to an international level. The book was translated into English and published in the United States in 1975. However, in 1982, its American publisher, St. Martin's Press, was forced to pull the book from circulation in response to new laws that prohibited photographs depicting sexual behavior involving children under sixteen. The book was banned in several countries. Prosecutors brought obscenity charges against the publisher in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, and Toronto, Canada. In New Zealand, the Indecent Publications Tribunal banned the book in 1976. The US Customs Service also seized imported copies of the book.
Due to legal controversies regarding its content, new physical copies are no longer in standard production in many regions, and it is primarily available through rare book antiquarians Bauman Rare Books digital version for research purposes?
Zeig mal, Will McBride
Settling in Berlin and later Munich, McBride quickly became a fixture of the European avant-garde. His work for the legendary, provocative youth magazine Twen redefined 20th-century photojournalism. Using his signature Leica camera, McBride captured the visceral, raw energy of a youth culture breaking free from the rigid trauma of post-WWII Germany.
(published in English as ) remains one of the most controversial and polarizing works in the history of photography and sex education. Released in 1974, the book was a collaboration between the American photographer Will McBride
Will McBride war ein Fotograf, der die Tabus seiner Zeit herausforderte. Geboren in St. Louis, Missouri, und später hauptsächlich in Deutschland tätig, wurde er zu einem der wichtigsten Chronisten der sexuellen Revolution und der Jugendkultur im Nachkriegsdeutschland.
Will McBride / Helga Fleischhauer-Hardt: Zeig mal ... - AbeBooks
, which used explicit photography to educate children and parents about sexuality. aperture.org About the Book:
The book was first published in Germany in 1974 by and translated into English a year later. It combined Fleischhauer-Hardt’s psychological commentary with McBride’s large-format black-and-white photographs.
Zeig Mal! was conceived during a time when sexual education was often sterile, clinical, or simply non-existent. Will McBride, who was active in Germany and known for his emotive, raw photography style, aimed to create something different. His artistic vision was to treat the human body, particularly the young human body, with purity, grace, and curiosity rather than taboo.
Despite its educational intentions, the book’s explicit depiction of minors led to immediate and long-lasting backlash.