Sex+: “Cut by the Blade, Polished by the Fire” Photography by Seven
“Cut by the Blade, Polished by the Fire” Photography
This series of sculptural stripper/hooker heels ('Cut by the Blade, Polished by the Fire') explores the beauty and brutality of the sex work industry.
There is something fantastical about the work of sex workers both in the creative cultivation of a fantasy for sale, and in the way we are perceived and imagined to be to those on the outside peeking in. It is very rare that we are allowed to exist as ourselves, fully owning our identities in the industry, without some type of lens of fetishization - seen only as objects of desire or victims of violence. Sex workers defy the capitalist patriarchal norm by commodifying the emotional and sexual labor that cis heterosexual men expect from femme people for free.
Because of this defiance, the majority of violence in the industry comes from attempting to keep the sex worker, real or imaginary, as an object of social control.
The sex work industry itself is not inherently violent nor responsible for the brutality inflicted against its workers. This imbalance of power is rooted in the manifestations of misogyny, racism, homophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, + and is enabled by the capitalist system fueled by shame and stigma.
The titles and compositions of my sculptural pieces imply violence - the violence of criminalization of sex work and the reaction of self defense. Resisting the reductions of our humanity, my work seeks to place agency back in the hands of sex workers. In the strip club specifically, the imagery of a platform stiletto is iconically representative of our work, but l am hoping to move beyond the shallow engagement and representation found in the mainstream media by defending our work as the art that it is - even if this defense demands we yield the weaponry of glass shards, sharp spikes, and nails.
