PORN III

The Price of Pleasure, a movie about the Porn Industry, has given me much food for thought this week.  In my last two posts, I've responded to the film - what I learned from it as well as what it triggered in me.  I'll continue with that today.

So one thing I'm noticing is that my artwork is very, very different from the pictures in porn.  I just googled "sexy woman" and came up with millions of pictures, of course, two of which I've pasted here.   The top one, the one in B&W, has her back arched and her lips pouted as if she wants to kiss.  She has a sultry look.  She is wearing high heels and something with straps - a thong perhaps - and looks ready for some S&M action.  The other woman looks like a teenager eating candy or whipped cream, ready to eat some other cream, presumably.  So often porn shots have women sticking something penile shaped into their mouths and looking like they're wanting a penis there. 

I don't understand what is empowering about offering to go down on a guy.  I can hardly imagine a guy saying no.  Actually women do have a lot of power when they're giving a guy head - just think what we could do if we wanted - bite! - but I doubt that many people really think about that when they're watching porn flicks - that would turn the porn world upside down, wouldn't it? - if the woman turned things around and started hurting the man?  Not that I would encourage that - I don't like any of these films that show people being hurt.

Anyway...  in my artwork, I strive to show truly empowered women.  Take a look at Che', the first model shown here.  To my eye, she looks like a very powerful woman who isn't about to take anything off anybody.  She looks the viewer right in the eye but not with a "come hither" sultry look that is asking him/her to have sex.  Rather, I feel met by Che' on a completely different level.  She is ready to engage in real conversation and to be authentic with me.  I do not get real or authentic from the "sexy woman" images above.  Not at all.

And I guess that's one of the things that bothers me so much about it.  I know actresses are ACTING, but they're pretending to love being hurt and denigrated.

I wish we lived in a world where women were respected and honored and treated like the precious people we are.  Treated like equals. 





This other painting is of a woman who was accessing her inner spirit and was dancing with it.  How very different than dancing with a passel of men and acting sexy - how completely unattuned to oneself.  Ouch.