THE BEST ACCOUNTS FOR EROTIC ART ON INSTAGRAM – PART I
Instagram has taken over our lives. It seems it has even entered one of the most private, and yet most talked about topics, sexuality. Although Instagram’s censor policies are debated a lot – think #freethenipple movement or all the fuss around hiding period blood stains for example – there are still artists finding a way to bring you naughty, powerful and positive sexual art to make you fantasize and make your darkest, your most beautiful desires come true. We made a little selection of our favorite erotic art accounts on Instagram and asked the artists behind what inspires them, what they think about feminism and how Social Media influence the way they work.
With very sensuous and dark, twisted characters, French artist Apollonia Saintclair gives us goosebumps every time we visit her account. The artist’s meticulously staged drawings hide stories we barely dare to imagine but can’t look away from. The pictures remind us of French pin-up ‘film noir’: always sexy and up to mischief, her female beauties haunt our dreams from which we’d love to never really wake up.
What made you want to draw erotic pictures in the first place? How did it all start?
Sex is a beautiful playground to show humanity. It is a reflection of our society ‘par excellence’, engraved in contrasting relief. There was no real beginning; I simply followed my inclination to discover and show secret, hidden, intimate things.
Who inspires you when you draw/paint?
The great masters, from Dürer to Moebius. Drawing is about telling a story using every dot, every line to suggest something in the mind of the viewer.
How has Instagram changed the way you work?
Instagram is a very fast medium that excels at presenting drawings with powerful graphic impact. It is an exercise of simplification and densification in the creation of a drawing. But it is also a non-committal media: you have to appreciate the positive or negative returns that you receive, but not allow yourself to deviate from your own path.
What do you think about Instagram’s censorship? Does it affect your work and if so how?
I understand perfectly that some content can not be viewed by all ages. The problem is not censorship, but censors. This task is not done by persons competent to appreciate the artistic value of an image, but by private individuals who impose their moral conceptions on the majority. That’s why some of my drawings, even previously self-censored, keep being reported and erased.
Would you consider your art as feminist or sexually positive for women? What does the word feminist mean to you?
I am certainly particularly interested in the role of women in our world, but my art is mostly humanistic, without distinction of gender. And definitely sexually positive.
Her Instagram profile picture is a close-up of sensuous lips tasting a lollipop in the shape of the planet: that’s exactly how Frida Castelli’s sexy paitings kiss the earth with their pink-orange glow. From very romantic pictures to more tortured – yet always with that joyful twist – scenes, the Milan-based artist dedicates all her paitings to her long-distance relationship partner. What a hot way to keep close beyond the real physical distance!
What made you want to draw erotic pictures in the first place? How did
it all start?
In my drawings I tell the story of my long-distance relationship.
Our respective jobs prevent us to meet often, so I use Instagram to give a good morning to my man every day, wherever he is. This somehow helps us feel a little closer to each other.
Who inspires you when you draw/paint?
Everything about my relationship. Lately I’ve been describing the 60 seconds of emotions I experienced when we first met in that hotel room…
How has Instagram changed the way you work?
Instagram has not changed my way of working, but since I’ve gained more popularity I felt the need to make my profile a clean and comfortable place for most people. Although some drawings are more explicit than others, my goal is to always communicate in a gentle and kind manner.
What do you think about Instagram’s censorship? Does it affect your
work and if so how?
It’s not a problem to censor some parts of my drawings. My profile is visited by people from all over the world and with values, cultures and sensibilities different from mine. I respect all these people and want to bring them comfort and delicacy. I tell a story about love, passion and melancholy, and I represent the naked body because it describes in a more efficient way my fragility and my naturalness.
Would you consider your art as feminist or sexually positive for
women? What does the word feminist mean to you?
It is said that sex is like food and I agree. I believe that sex is positive when you also have a positive memory, not just in the moment of the act. I do not recognize myself in the definition of a feminist. I respect and support gender equality, but without labels and definitions.
Based in the Mexican capital – although always ready for new adventures and places to live at – 26 year old Eromatica lets us sneak peek into little framed scenes of sexual thoughts. The artist invites us to dive into the framed, cartoon-like drawings and make up a story of our own, according to our personal and most intimate desires.
What made you want to draw erotic pictures in the first place? How did it all start?
I’ve always been following erotic art on Instagram and Tumblr. It’s a lovely magical way of expression, you just have to watch it to feel something. It made me want to express myself and it has helped me a lot, my soul and sexual appetite needed to be set free and I found liberation by drawing kinky situations between couples and alone.
Who inspires you when you draw/paint?
At first illustrations were inspired from myself and what my kinkyness was asking for. With time I noticed that my illustrations were not only feeling attractive to myself but to everyone, and that’s so pleasant. If I had to, I would say that my followers are inspiring me the most. I love to see how couples tag each other on my illustrations – it gives me goosebumps.
How has Instagram changed the way you work?
A lot. The magic behind the way Instagram works and the interaction with followers makes it amazing to work on projects like this. I’ve learnt a lot from interacting with followers. Understanding their feelings has helped a lot to keep the project growing.
What do you think about Instagram’s censorship? Does it affect your work and if so how?
I think it’s acceptable for them to censor some content, for certain reasons, but when it comes to art they should be more tolerant. I try to avoid censorship to not affect the main goal of the illustration, but sometimes I do play with hair, clothes and body-parts to cover intimate parts.
Would you consider your art as feminist or sexually positive for women? What does the word feminist mean to you?
Yes and no, I consider my art positive for everyone. I do lean a little bit more towards women. Sadly, history has shown that not everyone enjoys the same rights and I firmly believe in equal rights for all genders. To me ‘Feminism’ is meant to encourage everyone to fight for their rights, to erase the differences between genders. In this universe we are all the same .
Fine black lines give birth to details of intimate parts and kinky details of intimate sexuality. Always with a humourous twist, the 33 year old artist from Germany shows us her own interpretation of sexuality as something joyful and fun. Whether it’s softly pinching a nipple with chopsticks or playing with their own pubic hair, her characters are always represented in a minimalistic and very playful way, exploring their bodies and their sexual desires.
What made you want to draw erotic pictures in the first place? How did it all start?
Well… actually I gave up drawing many years ago for several personal reasons. But when I started a regular Instagram account about a year ago, I was literally overwhelmed by all those great artists who posted their art on the platform – especially the erotic section was pretty new to me, as I realized that a sexual content doesn’t necessarely mean porn.”Man is the most intersting to man” – so I had to try it too.
Who inspires you when you draw/paint?
There is no “who”, it’s more “what” – and this can be almost everything – a song text, a documentary, an article in a magazine, something funny someone says… This is how the ideas get born, the rest is just clicking some reference pics and then drawing…
How has Instagram changed the way you work?
As I already said, Instagram made me draw again, so it didn’t change the way I work. But I have to admit that the increasing number of followers scared me sometimes – of course it’s great to see that people like what I do – but I also felt the pressure not to disappoint them with my next post. It’s getting better now though, the explosion calmed down and so did I.
What do you think about Instagram’s censorship? Does it affect your work and if so how?
That’s a pretty difficult question. I think certain rules are okay and even desirable – especially when we talk about sexual and/or violent content as as the platform has no age limit. But this famous “no female nipples” rule for example – bullshit! Two of my posts got deleted so far, so not too many compared to other artist’s work. Probably because my drawings are pretty “harmless” I guess. By the way: the Insta rules actually say that nudity in drawings and paintings is okay.
Would you consider your art as feminist or sexually positive for women? What does the word feminist mean to you?
Oh yes! I really hope that people interpret my work as sexually positive. That’s why I love to draw about self-pleasure. I try to combine sexual content with humor because what’s sexuality without a little fun?
In his Instagram bio, the 42 year old Finnish artist describes his project as “painting the vitality beneath the appropriate surface”. In black and white he manages to bring us tropical heat waves through his incredibly sensual paintings. The Helsinki-based painter always finds a way to sneak in plants, silent observers of sexual encounters between different genders or of beautifully staged moments of selflove. Yes, warmth and passion also comes from the cold north!
What made you want to draw erotic pictures in the first place? How did it all start?
I’ve always felt the urge. The biggest issue for me was to accept the idea that this is the line of work that I really and honestly want to paint. As a cis man painting nudes, especially female nudes was for me somewhat burdened by the patriarchal tradition of looking and portraying nudity and sexual imagery. I want to offer an alternative way of looking at bodies connecting in sexual scenarios. Another more mundane reason might be the shortness of Finnish summers. I cherish those times when you can really stay warm in minimum clothing. It’s always warm in my pictures.
Who inspires you when you draw/paint?
I’ve always been intrigued by David Hockney. I adore the shower series from the Sixties, and the contemporary Bigger Picture paintings of the nature for their guts and vitality despite their traditional topics. I also enjoy his brush strokes; raw and unpolished.
How has Instagram changed the way you work?
Instagram is my biggest window to the world. It is amazing to reach a truly global audience. Instagram has affected on the rhythm and frequency of working. It’s almost always on Thursdays or Fridays that I paint. Sometimes my paintings look like a mess in those tiny Instagram squares.
What do you think about Instagram’s censorship? Does it affect your work and if so how?
Personnaly I haven’t been been that affected by it. Some posts have been deleted and that happens to all of us. And it is really arbitrary. When something gets deleted I do feel a bit shaky and violated for a short while. But I try to think that maybe my paintings might be absolutely shocking to some people and they might have good reasons for it. But they could always just block me.
Would you consider your art as feminist or sexually positive for women? What does the word feminist mean to you?
Both I hope. And in addition to that, I’d say sexually positive for everyone. I have lot of empathy for all my painted characters. I think they are in their given roles all very vulnerable and strong at the same time. I am a big supporter of gender fluidity. With the definitions of gender there are lots of assumptions imposed on you no questions asked. It might be helpful for many to consider stepping outside the binary box just for the fun of it.
For me feminism means at least two things: 1. active awareness of the possibility that own experiences, ideas and presumptions about gender, gender roles, relationship ideals, body image and suitable ways of expressing sexuality are most certainly not relevant to all. 2. having a possibility and freedom for finding your own path in peace without pressure from mainstream generalities. I try to keep myself open. Painting is a great tool for that. Life is a beautiful journey. No point in closing the shades in midway.
With the kind help of Delphine Lesiewicz