I don`t take myself seriously any more. Sometimes I just garden in my knickers and platform shoes.

So here we are... day 8 and i've shucked off everything but my undies. Thankfully it is warm enough to do so. 

Today I realised, from reactions, that guys are not really supposed to be running around in their knickers... it's the women who should be doing so and for the pleasure of the men. Are the gender biases so strong that the image of a male package with little more than fabric covering it are so offensive? When faced with this reality in front of you and, for a lack of a better phrase, in flesh and bone, do we shy away from our own sexuality and desire? Does the presence of this 'body', sprung from the pages of magazines really make us that uncomfortable with ourselves that we deny our own identity, whether it be a straight or gay or even undecided. Does looking mean that you are taking interest? Sooooo many questions spring for this particular day.  However, in the fashion publishing world, the opposite is true:

"Fashion photography has entered a new phase of controvoersy with the sexual preoccupations of the 1990's:post feminism, the new masculinity, ambivalence towards homosexuality, and sexual well being. As a result, men have become the object of desire and the subject of fashion."  (Craik 1993)

But the question is: why has this attitude not trickled into actual everyday life? What changes between the pages and the practice? It seems that today i just have questions and no answers. 

Is it about nudity? i think not. Is it about Sex? perhaps. Is it about desire? Yes, but not completely. it's the effect that the desire has on the identity of the individual. the direct connection between 'who i am' and 'what i want'. For some, the answer might not be what they feel is acceptable, for others it might be comfortable and natural. Fashion photography provokes viewers and consumers into confirming their own identity through structures of desire. (Craik 1993)  So, when in doubt, 'LOOK AWAY' seems to be the antidote. just avoid the question, avoid being faced with the 'gaze' or using the 'gaze'. just don't look. But if you are going through all of this looking away you are bound to, at some point, smack into something. Whether this 'something' is naked or clothed, male or female depends on which way you were leaning when you looked away. but the real question is, ARE YOU GOING TO LOOK BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE?

Stay tuned....