The world is in a state of protest, political upheaval and change. And for some nudity is the method of resistance, making a statement with the power of the body in its literally most stripped down state. While PETA has long used this approach in the "I'd rather go naked than wear fur" campaign, here are a few other examples that have come across my world recently:
Naked Ai Weiwei:
As a form of resistance artist, Ai Weiwei famous both for his work on the Olympic stadium as well as his arrest by the Chinese government (eventually freed after many around the world protested, in spite of being held for nearly three months without charge and a payment of half of his $2.4 million tax bill), posed nude. This act inspired the Chinese government to place him under investigation for pornography. His loyal followers have gone nude in solidarity, creating a web site of naked Ai Weiwei supporters with the slogan "Listen Chinese government, nudity is not pornography." Check out the site here:
http://awfannude.blogspot.com/
You can submit your own nude photo in support!
To read more:
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/the-rice-bowl/going-nude-ai-weiwei
Naked in Egypt: Aliaa Megda Elmahdy
: In Egypt's fight for a new chapter, 20 year old Elmahdy posted nude pictures of herself on the internet as mode of fighting for sexual equality and free speech in her nation. The blog has been a tremendous success and as of two week ago had 12,000 Likes on Facebook and over 1.6 million views. In Elmahdy's words (translated by the NY Times): "Try nude models who worked in Fine Art Facilities in the early 1970s, hide all art books and smash naked archaelogical statues. Then take off your clothes and look at yourselves in the mirror then burn your body that you so despise to get rid of your sexual complexes forever, before subjecting me to bigoted insults or denying my freedom of expression." Check out the blog:
http://arebelsdiary.blogspot.com/?zx=591eea6a956b49a8
To read more:
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwt201zgRCc?wmode=transparent]
Hundreds Naked in the Dead Sea:
In September more than 1,000 people, between the ages of 18 and 77, got naked in the Dead Sea for a photo project by Spencer Tunick, which was part of a campaign to raise awareness about water shortages and other environmental issues in the area. The Dead Sea is believed by experts to be evaporating by three feet every year. Some felt the shoot was offensive as "The Dead Sea s linked to the sites of the biblical Sodom and Gomorra, and one conservative Israeli lawmaker compared the photo shoot to that ancient debauchery."
To read more:
http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/the-casbah/israel-dead-sea-or-nude-beach-video
And here is a link back to some of my past coverage on the topic "If you are going to be political, might as well be naked": http://curatorofsex.com/if-you-are-going-to-be-political-might-as-wel