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gofree

Founder of clothesFREE

From: Hong Kong

Registered: 2006-07-18

Posts: 1,179

The Naked Photo Project

How did The Naked Photo Project start? The author of writing as jo(e) said below.

The author

The first time I posted a naked photo on my blog, it was a joke - a one-time deal. But my readers loved it. That's the thing about blogging. You get immediate feedback from your readers. My readers wanted more photos. So whenever I was at a conference, I'd take another naked photo.

Bodyscape

Bloggers wanted to pose for me. And I was intrigued by the conversations in the comments on my blog. Women began emailing me stories about their body. I heard about bulima and rape. I heard from women who had been raised Catholic, Jewish, Mormon, Muslim - who felt religion affected how they viewed their bodies. Women talked to me about childbirth, about menopause, about aging.

Them Naked Women

At conferences, women began coming up to me saying, "You're the naked photographer, aren't you? I have a story to tell you." The important part of the project, I've discovered, isn't the photos. It's the conversations that result because of the photos. Sometimes these conversations take place while I'm taking the photo. A woman comes to my room, takes off her clothes, and it's an almost instant intimacy. It's as if the photos are a catalyst that release the stories embedded in our bodies.

On the couch

Ironically, the stories that a woman tells me while I'm taking her photo do not end up on my blog. What I put on my blog is often a funny story about how I took the picture.

By the fire

At some point, I realized that the behind-the-scenes conversations, the stories that only I heard, were more important than what ended up on my blog. That's when I decided to write a book. My plan is to go back and interview every person whose posed for me, and invite her to tell her story.

Swinging

The naked photo project has been shaped by discussions in the comments of my blog, emails women have sent me, discussions that have taken place because of the photos. The book won't be just a recording of the stories, but a way of looking at how those stories get embedded in the body, how they get released, and how we share those stories.

Weaving