Fall 2020 - Spring 2021
Our bodies are being suppressed. Societal values have been invented and upkept that suppress the body of any and all. This suppression has been written into censorship laws that disproportionately suppress women and the queer community. This suppression has been built into cities when our most basic connection of architecture and the human is based on men such as Leonardo Da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man and Le Corbusier’s “The Modulor.” This suppression has been forced into our minds through media and advertising while those who contribute to this suppression profit.
A study conducted by professors at Princeton, Harvard, and Stanford have concluded with biological evidence that often times, men literally perceive women as objects. The study presented male participants with photos of fully clothed and semi-clothed women and asked them to assign verbs to each photo. Participants would match the words “(I) use, push, pull, squeeze…” with the less clothed photos and the words “(She) uses, pushes, pulls, squeezes…” with the fully clothed women. This shows that men have a tendency to sexualize women and perceive them as objects for their own use rather than agents of their own being.
This is not an instinctual perception. Rather, it is learned, as all perception is. Professor of Psychology Gary Lupyan explains we don’t see things as they really are because every perception we make is founded on an idea or belief that already exists within us or that has been imparted on us by our upbringing or experiences. So if we can change people’s inherent beliefs and experiences, we can change their perceptions.
Censorship laws censor anything which is obscene. To further the obscure nature of obscenity laws, all but six states have added the following words to the definition of obscene: disgusting, filthy, indecent, improper, impure, lascivious, lewd, licentious, and vulgar.
These words have no objective meaning and are defined circularly, each defining one of the others.
Because the law offers endless opportunity of interpretation, each case is a precedent for the next, trickling down definitions of obscenity that reflect a culture no longer present.
The long-lasting results of this are a culture in which censorship protects the viewer instead of the person being censored.
Our bodies can be celebrated and emancipated through naturism.
Naturism is defined as a lifestyle of non-sexual nudity, or being nude without the intention of being sexually stimulating. Naturism has the ability to combat sexualization of the body while simultaneously promoting mental and physical health and empowering those othered by society.
Warren, a professor at Princeton who studied naturist societies wrote, “Since nothing is concealed, there is no room for curiosity or inspectionism” and because of this the ego is forced to conceal its own inappropriate thoughts and responsibility is placed now on the viewer as there is no censored.
Through the technique of unlearning and anarchitecture we will dismantle what is currently upholding the suppression and censorship of bodies. We need to force confrontation between nudism and censorship in order to change the perception of the nude body as dirty.
Because the words used to define obscenity and guide censorship are so vague, we can use these words as an entryway for nudity in society. We will slowly change people’s beliefs and experiences in order to change their perception of what is obscene.
San Francisco also has what are called Privately Owned Public Open Spaces, or POPOS.
Because they are privately owned, maintained, and secured, there is some wiggle room with what activities are allowed within these POPOS. Technically, these spaces do not have to follow public law, which allows for nudity and the chance to force a different interpretation of obscenity.
The vast network of these spaces allows for infiltration of nudism throughout the city.
The first step is to inject nudity into the POPOS, then allow this nudity to spread on its own throughout the city.
Our bodies can reach enlightenment through a series of six experiences. The separation of mind and body has come from the censorship of the body. Obscuring vision and enhancing the other senses allows the body to recover form this loss of harmony. Let me take you on a journey.
As you progress along your path to enlightenment, your vision will become more and more obscured with every step. Becuase your vision is obscured you will be forced to rely on other senses to guide you through the experience.