My name is Elsa. I have a long term, ongoing nude in nature documentary series of strangers, lovers and myself. Sociology, psychology, philosophy and astrology play a major role in my daily existence and existential dread, which comes through as a catalyst for my art. I cope with my mind and place on this earth through taking photographs that capture the primal, making art that exudes the earth and all of its wilderness and wildness. Hypersexuality, exploitation and the male gaze that have defined our oversaturated digital landscape for millennia, push me through and across my own limits and boundaries, as well as help me in defying societal norms while defining the new norm. What is body positivity? What is sexuality? A nude photo? Porn? Innocence? Happiness? Any question is better than any answer.
The sacred and the sensual define and inspire me. Vulnerability, sexuality, strength, innocence and exploration define my work.
Erotic and nude art has been around for centuries. Even though censorship is at an all time high, so is opportunity. My body is my work, life and protest. My pictures are a way for me to breathe, experience a sort of therapy, and also a way to explore community, femininity, masculinity, supremacy, normalcy, truth and existence. The human condition and sexuality span the forefront of human consciousness. This is what permeates my life and mind.
I’m also a nudist. So I don’t just capture peoples souls and bodies. I am them. They are me. We are one.
Placing myself naked in nature wherever whenever possible, my story is about survival.
“The female nude… [is] seeking an identity and agency beyond a patriarchal prescription… There are few themes that connect the centuries and centuries of art history like the nude; but there is more to nudes than peachy behinds and come-to-bed eyes.” (Aindrea Emelife, Free Venus, text for nude womens show at fotografiska)
“Who owns the nude? … Since the idealized bodies of ancient Greek sculpture, the Nude has meant an idea of ideal beauty. At the start it was male, but after the Renaissance the nude became a term to describe a young and perfect female body.” (Frances Borzello, art historian, critic and author)
