So you are in Texas prison, and you want to stay connected to the international world of art. Logically, you turn to Art+Auction magazine for the finest coverage. Bad news: This modest goal just got a little more difficult this summer, when Art+Auction was banned by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

The action, which Art+Auction was informed of via fax, was triggered by prisoner James Hightower, and specifically concerned the June 2011 issue (featuring Dasha Zhukova on the cover). The TDCJ's stated reason for forbidding the inmate from his copy of A+A was that "Page 6 contains sexually explicit images," a fact apparently spotted by a vigilant mailroom employee. Hightower was forced to destroy his copy of the mag. However, he appears to be appealing the action.

The disputed image is an ad by San Francisco's Modernism Inc. gallery, by photographer Michael Dweck, featuring a young woman, nude and holding a yellow surfboard, with the beach in the background. "The image is called 'Pin-Up Poster 1' and was made in my back yard in Montauk in 2006 and is part of a series I am working on the subject of seduction," Dweck explained to ARTINFO.

The question of whether, or to what degree, the state can restrict inmates from sexually explicit material has long been the subject of legal debate. A Michigan inmate recently sued the state's governor for being prevented from accessing pornography while serving his term.

"When I last checked the 14th Amendment to the United States Constitution, state and local governments cannot deprive persons of life, liberty, or property," Dweck said. "And I believe that includes photographs of beautiful naked women with surfboards."