The Importance of Sex in Art

While philosophers debate whether or not life reflects art or art reflects life, I am content with saying that the two are most definitely intimately intertwined.  An important piece of my sex-positive platform is giving sex an intentional and celebrated role in your life and art with sexual themes is something that I find powerful.  Imagine what it means to create art and then share it with the world. It is an act of vulnerability to put a piece of yourself onto paper and an act of trust to share it with others.  Those with the wherewithal to complete such a task with grace and beauty are people I admire.

Salvador Dali

Raised in Spain, Dali was a weirdo. I think he got a kick out of being so.  This artist's rise to fame began in the 1920's and continued until his death in 1989. Ozzy Osbourne was not the first famous person to eat a bat, Dali was (at the age of 5)!  Like the shock rockers of modern times Dali admitted openly within his biography of having some sordid sexual proclivities.  However, he most likely made these admissions to gain attention from the public.

Portrait of Dali's wife, Gala

The title of this one is "Young Virgin Sodomized by the Horns of Her Own Chastity"

A skilled painter, Dali also wrote his biography, starred in his own films, and participated in photography projects.  He wanted all of us to remember that mustache long after he was gone.

Georgia O'Keefe

Raised in rural Wisconsin but similar in age to Dali, O'Keefe made a decision to become an artist in 1916.  She was perhaps a pioneer in promoting feminine beauty.  I won't go into the controversy because someone already did, but I will sum it up: Feminists love O'Keefe's embracing the task of creating big, lovely, colorful vulvas.  They have even offered her honors and awards for doing this task so dutifully and wonderfully.  Except she swears they were really just flowers.

......Hmmmm.... Really?

O'Keefe did open the door for other artists to paint pretty, colorful, flowery vulvas into modern times.  This she cannot deny.

I tried but I could not find out the painter of this lovely vajayjay flower

I don't blame O'Keefe or the public for the confusion about what she intended her artwork to be.  Some flowers really look like vulvas.  Some vulvas really look like flowers.  Those are simply the facts. 

Nobuyoshi Araki

He is the most explicitly sexual artist in history by my estimation.  This is due in no small part to his being a photographer.  Photos are by default much more explicit than surreal or symbolic paintings. However, unlike Ms. O'Keefe, Araki had a significant intention to capture sexual essence in his photos.  His critics often say he not an artist but a pornographer.  Either way, his work is enjoyable and has a precise flavor.

He has published some 350 books.  Most notably; Sentimental Journey, photos chronicling his honeymoon; Tokyo Lucky Hole, as dirty as it sounds; and Shino, photos exclusively of his favorite model.  

My favorite Araki

Like Dali, Araki has also dabbled in film to a lesser success.  However, it appears to be recording artists that are some of his biggest fans.  He has spent time photographing Bjork, creating the cover art for her 1997 album, Telegram.  He also spent time taking lots of pictures of Lady Gaga for Vogue Hommes Japan. Araki published only 500 copies of the book he made with the entire collection of Gaga photos.

  

Bondage Gaga

Araki + Bjork 

Create and procreate as creatively as possible,

- The Sexpert