Needed! Subjects for Feminist Photo Project

I just had a donut with the rad Taylor Paino, a photographer who is exploring the concepts of vulnerability, confidence and feminism in her latest school project. Taylor's past projects have focused heavily on the history of feminism and she hopes to look to the present of the topic with her more recent work. To see some of her past work, check out her flickr page (the nude woman in an Irish church is an especially amazing shot, with a fantastic story).

Taylor is looking for awesome women to pose as subjects for her current project, which she describes with the following artist statement:

"I wish to meet with and photograph current feminists and have a conversation about what being a feminist in the 21st century means. What is the vocabulary we use, what are the causes we fight for, and where are we heading? In this “post-feminist” society, where do we stand? Within that conversation I want my subjects to show me their most vulnerable and their most confident. In a media-saturated culture littered with faux confidence and a hook-up culture void of vulnerability where do feminists stand in these two places and how does that define or help the feminist agenda?

Each woman I photograph will have the opportunity to decide what makes them feel the most vulnerable and the most confident. Whether that be an outfit, an object, a person, place, or lack of those things, I want these photographs to represent real women, real strength, and show beauty that is outside of our cultures norm. I will leave the choices of where they are, what they are wearing, and how much they are willing to show me up to the subjects and photograph them in more of a documentary style while holding a conversation with them about their passions, fears, and the future of feminism.

In my past photographic projects I feel like I have had a heavy footing in feminist history.
I have been dealing with stereotypes and societal norms which means that I have done substantial research in past feminism and where the movements have been all while trying to find my voice. Now that I have dabbled with historical references I want this next project to start to create a new path or discover a path that has already been started.

I am also asking the women I photograph to hand write a one page statement about feminism, their ideas surrounding feminism, vulnerability, and/or confidence or any thing else they think the general public should hear. Something that I can photocopy and put along with the photographs as a take away for people who view the work. "

If you are interested in meeting up with Taylor and possibly being featured in this project, email her at tpaino@mcad.edu—the sooner the better, as she is looking to start processing the photos by April 21st. If schedules allow, she would love to meet up with subjects to talk about the project before doing the actual shoot (ideally in your own home! And, as she points out much of her past work features nudity, you don't have to be naked, but if you want to be, that is cool too. It's all about whatever you are comfortable with). 

In other news, don't forget that the C.L.A.P. support group is now meeting on the third Tuesday of each month (this month, that's April 16th) at 7 p.m. at Anodyne coffee shop at 4301 Nicollet Ave. S., Minneapolis. This month, we are going to be talking about how we've worked (or tried to work) on a creative goal. Come for fun times, inspiration and all around good people.

Also, C.L.A.P. is now accepting submissions for the Light 2013 issue. Theme is "Make Art, Not War." Deadline is June 30th. Email all submissions to creativeladiesarepowerful@gmail.com. And we are going to have a rad, rad release party sometime in the fall. The "Outerspace, Dreams and Other Deep Themes" Dark 2012 issue is now available, on the Double Peace Etsy site and at the St. Paul Everyday People Clothing Exchange (other locations to come...).