A controversial view of childhood has opened at York City Art Gallery.
The exhibition, called Petty Crimes, includes photographs of home-made children's weapons, 18 bikes customised to look like the popular '70s bicycle the Chopper, and pictures of schoolchildren in the north east.
An art gallery spokesman said: "Petty Crimes looks at the nature of child's play, exploring the behaviour of children from harmless fun to pester power and calculated cruelty.
"It also addresses contemporary concerns about child power, and issues including role models, gender and identity and the fantasy world of play."
Featured artists include Graham Fagen, whose work speaks of the violence of children by showing toys and weapons that he made and played with as a child.
Wendy McMurdo has produced photographs of children absorbed in play, designed to show their isolation, while Jeremy Dickinson shows paintings of toy vehicles bearing chips and flaking paint from many hours of play.
Updated: 12:05 Monday, February 12, 2001
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