Female Nude and the Male Artist

 

Nzekwe Phillips Lexie Okai; clay and fiberglass on wood which is evolved using traditional Benin methods.

This is an absolutely gorgeous piece!*

The unclothed human form, male and female, is beautiful. I am comfortable with it as an art form, in many instances enjoy the works. I'm not even bothered too much by the ones that border on porn, except when the artist tries to pretend it is high art rather than a titillation piece. In those cases, artistic dishonesty is a turn-off more than the artwork itself.

Personally, I don't question expression of the body and actually believe that the unclothed form is more natural than covered, just as pre-colonial societies demonstrate.

That said, we live in different times. And as much as I respect the nude form, I am, many times, torn between appreciating a particular artist's nude female work and struggling with his entrenched, patriarchal stance as expressed by the artist. When engaging the work of male artists that are new to me the question is in the back of my mind: "Sure, he states how much he appreciates the nude female form, but who is he really?"

How does the artist's patriarchy inform his work and selection of subject matter? At the foundation of patriarchy is objectification and silencing of females.

To me the question is: Can a patriarchal male inhabit another dimension in his work with the female nude such that she, in that instance alone (no other areas of his life), becomes a full human equal to him in intelligence, maturity, creativity, sexual choice, and spirituality?

The male artist-female nude is a complex domain.

*NOTE: This discussion of patriarchy and art has no reference to artist Nzekwe Phillips Lexie Okai or his masterful art. The image of his piece is shared solely because it is exquisite and exhibits tasteful representation of the nude female form.
  

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Vulva Art

The sacred orifice.

It only makes sense that God created woman first. 

If you believe in the miracle of Jesus' birth (and she will bring forth a son, Matthew 1:21, Luke 1:31), why can't you accept the creation of woman and her miracle birth of the first man. 

It makes much more sense than some first abdominal surgery story! I mean, with that story we're talking anesthesia, ICU, pain meds, months of recovery, post-surgery abnormalities, etc., etc.

Woman created first: Miracle conception and we're good to go! 

Every pattern in the universe is efficient. Every single one.  Creating man first would have been inefficient. Period!

There is no other instance in the Bible of miraculous surgery. However, Eve giving birth to Adam would set precedent for Mary's miraculous conception of Jesus. 

 If you are on Facebook you can read my original 'Vulva Art' post dated September 27, 2016.

Listen to my appearance on 10/22/2016 radio program Every Woman.

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Redemption

You know, I believe many of us are in a great deal of pain. Not for the same reasons or stemming from the same causes, to be sure. But the connections among us means we affect each others' vibration. The soul-level groaning evident in our disparate frustrations, impatience with each other, judgment of those we hardly know, insistence that "they" are the problem, the inability and unwillingness to dialogue together on a solution speaks to a restlessness.

These observations may seem a negative outlook, but I see these symptoms as a sign of humanity's intuitive move toward redemption.

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Sketches of (S)Pain

Moyo's use of negative space and line detail are masterfully in conversation with Davis' 1959 album.

Sketches of Pain, Moyo Okediji (2016)

Miles Davis did an album in 1959 titled 'Sketches of Spain.' I think it is located inside the slaves ships from Spain, sailing to the Americas. ~Moyo Okediji

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Enjoy the Ride

When my sons were small they frequently expressed the desire to be grown-up. I would gently encourage them to enjoy the freedom of their youth.

Of course, they didn't comprehend what carefree was--it was all they knew, and one cannot know what they do not know.

Early in their manhood they began to know and would sometimes lament not completely appreciating, thereby not fully living out, their youthful unencumbrance.

I have since overheard them counseling their nephews not to rush to the finish line of youth.

I suggest the same for Generation Xers and Millennials in a hurry to "dethrone" (by various means) their adjacent previous generation, and their elders who have paid dues and have the scars, pains, and tribulation in witness thereof.

When you arrive here, when it's your turn, you will be unable to return to now. Enjoy the ride.

And now, the poem that inspired these thoughts.

Two Little Boys

Two little boys sit on the porch
Swinging their legs in tune with the wind
Happily chatting away and laughing
I can not hear what amuses them
But I am most certain it is not tomorrow.

There was a time when I too laughed thus:
It was either the kite in the sky,
A plane flying past,
A flower dancing with the wind,
Or the moon surrounded by it luminous children,
All evicted a smile from me.

Little boys, do not grow up please
Hardship and trouble await you
Life would never return that which it takes from you
It will sap your youth and still come for your breath.

Look upon nature little boys and smile
The unexplored world is a terrible one
Be content with innocence.
Childhood only comes once in a lifetime
Let not tomorrow bother you young ones
Be content with today and look upon it with a smile.

(C) Ubaji Isiaka Abubakar Eazy 2016

Image: Vivian Maier, New York, Two Boys With Hand On Shoulder, 1955.

Z.: Little boys, what are your names? How old are you? What's your favorite color?

For a long time, I have been troubled by the pace at which the system prods our children to grow up faster than the bodies, and emotional and intellectual development can support. Why, even the hormones in modern food causes girls to develop breasts much sooner than they used to decades ago.

None of us are going to get out of here alive. Why are we rushing to the grave?!

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