Rise of the Semi

I've lamented recently my concern over bringing the issues of exhibitionism and nudism so frequently together - since, when combined, they seem to form a rather volatile concoction. Yet, as both a nudist and an exhibitionist, it's a confluence of topics that - like one of the Marquis de Sade's fictional character's pricks - keeps coming up over and over again.

I could certainly stand to make a greater effort to keep these subjects separate, but in consideration of my dedication to posting daily blogs this year, in conjunction with the fact that I've amassed quite a backlog, when a photoshoot with solid nudist intentions evolves (as they sometimes do, in a liberated atmosphere - I've said more about this here) into something rather more erotic, I feel compelled to keep it undivided.

This, however, can have the effect of muddying what I'd like to be a nudist statement, when it's paired with something considerably non-nudist in nature, often leading me to long, anxious deliberations about whether or not to tag a post with the 'nudism' label (for partial relevance), at the risk of drawing unfavorable associations to the lifestyle.

Sometimes the contrast is more egregious (for example, pairing Sunning in November with the fourth installment of The Naughty Cot - although it seemed a natural progression at the time), and other times I end up sporting a semi in what I wanted to be a nudist-kosher image. The latter is what I'd like to explore further today.

The deviantART Influence

In the days of Flickr, which has a fairly liberal policy on the posting of pornography (provided everything is properly filtered) - or at least it did when I posted there, several years ago - I could post nude pictures with a flaccid penis, or erotic pictures with a raging hard-on. It didn't matter. And I explored both extremes.

[description: portrait of a nude male torso, penis flaccid]
Two states - flaccid and erect
[description: portrait of a nude male torso, penis erect]

As for the in-between, there was no sense in showing up half-cocked, as it were. But when I came to deviantART [NSFW], I had to adopt a different approach, because that site doesn't allow "pornographic" images. I, of course, still took those images, I just couldn't share them there. But given the highly variable nature of the male genitalia, it didn't take me long to start experimenting with the line between flaccid and erect.

You could argue that I've been pushing the boundaries, trying to fly erections "under the radar" - although in truth, this is not what I've been doing. It is a fact that the rules make a binary distinction between flaccid and erect, and it is similarly a fact of biology that the line between these states is vague and fluid. I am merely exploring that realm, as any good artist would - trying to pin down just how erect a penis has to be in order to be considered "erect" (asking the important questions).

As such, I quickly found that I could produce erotic portraits that do not explicitly depict erections, yet present a rather more...impressive stature than your perfectly sterile fine art nudes. Once again this brings up the issue of where the line between art and porn - and also between the aesthetic and erotic appreciation of physical beauty - should be drawn, which is a central and recurring theme in my art.

[description: portrait of a nude male torso, penis engorged, but hanging limply]
At which point does it cease to be flaccid,
and proceed to be considered erect?

The result is that I suppose I have trained myself, to some degree, to blur the line between "pure" nudes and erotic (but not strictly pornographic) nudes - "what male nude image couldn't be improved", in essence, "with a more prominent, eye-catching penis?" - which may come to be a problem, especially insofar as I try to depict nudism through my photography.

In my mind, it's all different aspects of a cohesive whole, which combine to form my artistic vision - the pursuit of ideal, aesthetic/erotic (does it matter?) beauty. I struggle to compartmentalize my work - fine art nudes, erotic portraits, artistic pornography. That's why, I suppose, my gender experimentations are suffused with eroticism (and why so much of my experiences with trying on clothes includes taking all of them off).

That's also why, however, you can see all of these things here in one place - my experiences with nudism, my pursuit of erotic beauty, and my experiments with gender. Why should they have to be separated? Except that in our culture, anything to do with sex carries a shame and a stigma. But I believe that's an error that ought to be corrected. Which is why I feel glorified by "eroticizing" (sexualizing, if you will) anything and everything - even something like nudism, provided I take the time to explain that something being sex-y is quite different than something being sex-ual.

I'm not saying we should all be having sex out in the streets (although that sounds exciting as a fantasy). I'm just saying that if it turns you on to walk around town naked, then more power to you. Because that shouldn't hurt anyone. And if it does, or if we don't live in a world where the rest of the population can behave themselves under those conditions, then why the fuck not? Something - or maybe someone(s) - needs to change.