CNN
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What does intimacy look like for seniors? There’s no end to sex scenes and other steamy content starring young and wrinkle-free people, but once past a certain age, pop culture largely empties. — or see sex as the bottom line.
Last year, artist Marilyn Minter set out to change that, bringing together a group of men and women aged 70 and over in her New York studio to show the lesser-seen side of sex and relationship. In the provocative and colorful images, the seniors are stripped naked to only underwear or briefs; they hug, kiss and caress each other in the hot moment. Photos capture our attention to challenge what is still considered taboo, presenting playful, adorable moments.
“There is so much contempt for the older sex. One of the models I worked with even said, ‘Who wants to see all this?'” Minter recalled on a video call with CNN.
“My whole thought process on this was that we were pioneers,” she continued unabashedly about the sexualization landscape. “No one has ever shot an elderly person affectionately, and with any elegant form. And that’s my goal – to make them look appealing.”
Some of the images were later originally published in The New York Times Magazine, accompanied by a candid editing feature about the sex lives of older adults. Minter is currently publishing the full series in his forthcoming book “Elder Sex” and displaying them at the LGDR gallery in New York. Exhibition, Open in Aprilis her first solo performance in the city since the Brooklyn Museum hosted her “Pretty/Dirty” retrospective in 2016, and showcases highlights of her career. spanning her five decades, as well as other new works.
In “Elder Sex,” Minter employed one of her signature aesthetics, which she discovered in both paintings and surrealist photographs: the jewel-toned, close-cropped composition of filled bodies. glittering, as if expressed through the glass of an evaporating mirror or window. . But despite her credentials as one of the most important and boundary-breaking artists today – and despite stars like Lady Gaga And Lizzo pose for her — Minter couldn’t find enough couples who were actually willing to participate.
“We want (inclusive) all races, all gender categories,” explains Minter. “We had a lot of trouble getting models. I am 74 years old. I asked all my friends – in interracial relationships, in lesbian relationships – and none of them did.”
In the end, Minter chose the actor along with a number of people who agreed. She stitches them together in her studio, photographing them behind a sheet of frozen glass – a trick to get a steamy, steamy look without having to fend off the ephemerality of steam. During photo shoots, Minter said all of her models, who are 89 years old, tell her they still have a normal and enjoyable sex life. Their sentiments are in line with those interviewed for the New York Times Magazine article, who described a deeper intimacy with their partner later in life, as well as learning to navigate and appreciate their needs as their bodies age.
Minter believes there is a sense of sexual freedom later in life that, for many people, can take time to achieve.
“When you’re young and having sex, it’s a little more effective than when you’re 80,” she says. As an older person, “You’re thinking, ‘This is me. Either take it or leave it. I will just enjoy myself. I won’t fake anything here.’”
Minter acknowledges that sexuality and self-image is difficult for women of all ages — older women are rarely taken seriously with their need for intimacy, while younger women , sex organs are often a stressful walk — too much and you might have Minter say, “Frustrated and embarrassed.
“When you’re 25, there’s a lot of fear about young women having sex organs – it’s scary for everyone,” she said.
Marilyn Minter revealed a steamy ‘fairy bath’ photo
But the artist sees some progress in who will be considered attractive on our television screens, reflecting a growing shift in cultural attitudes about sex. She pointed to People magazine photos comparing the characters of “The Golden Girls” and “Sex and the City,” who were about the same age at the time of the HBO Max reboot (owned by the company). of CNN’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discover). “The 50s look a lot different in the 2020s!” a caption exclaimed.
While “Golden Girls” also delves deeply into romance and intimacy — and was considered by many to be gender-positive at the time — there is a stark contrast in the way women are represented in the country. 50s in two movies.
“I thought, ‘Okay, here’s why it’s different,'” she said. “First: People live longer and healthier… Second: there is something called Viagra.” Minter laughed and added: “But who retired at 54? To a house in Florida with three other women? What?”
She hopes “Elder Sex” will not only serve as a much-needed visual reference to what intimacy can look like at an older age, but also resonate with those who aren’t. feel their desires — and lives — are disregarded.
“It allows people to feel ashamed of their sex drive,” she said. “I want this to allow them to explore that and remove the shame.”
“Mr. Sex,” published by JBE Books, available now.
