he "L'Espace" centre told sculptor-painter Phuong Vu Manh that six officials, including police and Ministry of Culture representatives, visited the place Tuesday, all angered by his work, the artist said.

The sculpture, called "A Statue of Phuong Vu Manh" depicts him painted green, labelled with diseases and on a drip, to depict, he says, how pollution affects people in modern society.

The statue had been on display for about 10 days without apparently raising any eyebrows, the artist said.

He suspected that the removal of a floral display obscuring the statue's private organs may have triggered officials' disapproval.

A French diplomat, who asked not to be named, said the artwork's removal was a case of "administrative authorisation" rather than censorship, as the work displayed "was not completely in line with the file shown to the authorities".

The exhibition, which was supposed to last until Friday, "was inaugurated in the presence of Vietnamese officials," the source insisted, adding that the statue had been "removed in agreement with the artist".

Agence France Presse - March 24, 2010