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Tattoo Project with Doug Pierce!
Doug Pierce and I got together via zoom recently so that he could interview me about my tattoos! We had a great conversation and got into a lot of the nuances about my most recent tattoo project, so if you’re curious we have a bunch of videos for you to watch! I also took self portraits to document where I am with my tattoo so far so I’ve shared some of those below! Click through to the galleries to see all of the images. The interview was about an hour long and I’ve separated it into 14 shorter clips. It would be too many to embed in this blog post, so I’m gonna link to them instead! CLICK HERE TO WATCH ALL THE INTERVIEW CLIPS
Or if you’re looking for answers to certain questions (individual clips):
– Info about my original back piece tattoo
– How Doug’s use of tattoos (si’gilyn) in his stories impacts how I feel about tattoos
– What was the first tattoo I received and how did I know I wanted it?
– Are most tattoos painful?
– Is there something about the pain that enhances the experience? How do I manage the pain?
– Is getting tattooed a spiritual experience for me?
– What’s the general inspiration for this massive tattoo project?
– Were my ecosexual and/or agender identities a factor in the overall design of this tattoo?
– How does this tattoo incorporate or cover up prior tattoos and why?
– Why is the Poplar Tree in particular so important to me?
– Who are the individual creatures in the tattoo and what is their significance?
– What have I learned about myself in going through this process so far?
– What’s my tattoo healing process?
– Closing information + shout out to my tattoo artistClick here to view the 20 image digital self portrait set
Click here to view the 22 image cell phone self portrait set
Click here to watch the BTS self portrait timelapse video in another window
Click here to respond to my survey + help me create content you want to see!
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Virtual nude gathering TODAY!
Today’s the day! It’s the virtual nude gathering!
There’s still a little bit of time to register! The event is at 1pm eastern!
Let’s hang out naked together!
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THE NUDE GATHERING
USE CODE ‘BLMBR’ TO GET IN FREEImage: Lior Allay September 2019
Models left to right: Doug Pierce, Lior Allay, me, Robert Beech, Anon, + Brat_trainer
Location: Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary
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MEMES! Gender, labels, + consent, oh my!
I was sharing memes on instagram that included nude images but deleted them all when ig did their most recent update to the terms of service because I was scared of getting my account deleted AGAIN. My original account with 22.6k followers got deleted in October 2018 and I never got it back, so I really would like that to NOT happen again.
I still love the memes that I made and want to share them, so here are some of the ones that I used to have on my ig before I deleted them!
Original caption:
Photo: Chip Willis
Model + meme: me, Bunny LunaI am angry today so I am channeling that anger into making my first ever meme. Hah, it’s funny that I’m choosing this as my first post since my hibernation. (TW: breach of consent) This meme is dedicated to the TWO middle aged white men who assumed it was okay to touch me without consent yesterday.
They obviously felt entitled to my body because I have a vulva and am younger than them? One rubbed my freshly cut hair on the top of my head, without asking or commenting or anything, just touched me out of nowhere. The other literally pulled me by the arm so I could pose for him in front of some photos of mine, and then proceeded to move my arm to get me to pose in a certain way. He didn’t even ASK if I wanted to take a photo. I told him my rates, and he laughed.
Original caption:
Labels are complicated, and have the potential to be both positive AND negative. As someone who has learned a lot about themself over the last year, and changed quite a bit, labels have been something I’ve honestly struggled with. It’s easy to say that labels are not important, and they don’t have to be if you don’t want them to, but for some people they’re incredibly important, especially when you’re trying to figure out who you are.
Labels are positive in that they help us figure out what space we occupy in the world, they help us describe ourselves to others, and they help us find community and people who are similar to us. Labels can be negative when people assume incorrect things about us, put is in boxes that don’t fit us, or when they refuse to see us for who we really are.
It feels awful to be labeled as something you’re not, and it feels amazing and is so affirming when someone uses the correct label(s) to describe you. No matter what, only YOU can choose what labels are right for you. There is nobody who knows you better than yourself.
Some labels that I personally use because they feel right and true for me: non binary, queer, ecosexual, non monogamous, artist, witch, demisexual, creative, sproutling (my mom came up with this to describe me to others instead of saying that I’m her adult child and I love it!)
What labels do you use that feel authentic to you?
Self portrait taken in Utah during my 69 day cross country road trip in 2019 (before I cut my hair obviously).
Original caption:
Never touch anyone without their explicit consent. Yes, this includes hugs with friends and family, asking or talking about someone’s tattoos/clothes/hair, directing a model for a photoshoot, posing with another model, kissing your crush…
The ONLY exception to this that I can think of is if that person is in immediate danger and there is literally no time to ask for consent.
Keep in mind, consent is not only for physical touch. You should also get consent when flirting with someone, commenting on someone’s body, sharing difficult or potentially triggering information, sharing a story someone told you with someone else, posting photos of people… basically if it involves someone else, you probably need their consent.
Have something to share about consent? I’d love to read your thoughts/stories in the comments!
Words: Douglas Pierce
Photo + meme: me, Bunny Luna (self portrait in Utah)
I didn’t save the caption for this one, but it’s pretty self explanatory. =]
Original caption:
I am not the person I was a year ago, or last week, or yesterday. You probably aren’t either. We are all on perpetual journeys of growth and expansion. Every day we learn something about ourselves, every day we become a newer version of who we know ourselves to be.
Without change there is no innovation, no deeper understanding, no growth. You are a bottomless ocean filled with gifts unknown, until you dive in and explore your depths.
Photo + meme: me, Bunny Luna (self portrait in Colorado)
Original caption:
I recently had a really difficult conversation about my gender with a family member who is unwilling to do the work to understand and accept me for who I am. Their response to my being non binary was that I’ going through an “identity crisis” and it’s something that I’ll “grow out of” once I figure myself out.
It’s especially frustrating to me that they feel that way, because I know myself better now that I ever have. I know that I can’t make them see me for who I truly am, and that’s their work to do, not mine. It still hurts that someone I love doesn’t actually know me and instead chooses to only see me as the person they thought I was when I was younger and didn’t know myself.
I will continue to correct them when they misgender me (which is something I am constantly struggling with and tend to just stay quiet about it), because I want them to know that this is ME, not an “identity crisis” that I’ll “grow out of”
Sending lots of love to all of my trans siblings who have to deal with this every day. It’s really hard, and you deserve to be honored and acknowledged in your gender. I see you. I honor you. You are valid and important and I love you for WHO YOU ARE.
Photo/meme: me, Bunny Luna (self portrait in Colorado)
Original caption:
I moved through the first 28ish years of my life carrying the layers of expectations and assumptions of society that were thrown on top of me as a child before I knew I had any other option. Now that I know more about how the world works, I realize that I’ve been holding on to many things that are not truly mine. Parts of me buckled under that oppressive weight of binary gender, compulsory cis hetero monogamy, religion, racism, and capitalism (among others).
I am choosing to let go of the layers of anything that is not for the benefit of myself and the earth. It is a constant shedding, and it is not easy, but it is worth it. I wake every day with less of what isn’t mine so that I can understand what truly IS for me. I learn who I am by questioning.
Self portrait in Colorado
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VIRTUAL NUDE GATHERING TODAY!
Today’s the day! It’s the virtual nude gathering!
There’s still a little bit of time to register! The event is at 1pm eastern!
Let’s hang out naked together!
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER FOR THE NUDE GATHERING
USE CODE ‘BLMBR’ TO GET IN FREEImage: Lior Allay September 2019
Models left to right: Doug Pierce, Lior Allay, me, Robert Beech, Anon, + Brat_trainer
Location: Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary
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Conscious Creativity 2019
CAPTION FOR VIDEO ABOVE:
Hi friends! So… I always come over here because it’s shady and I have very pale skin and need to stay in the shade. AW! I just got excited because I just found a little tiny poplar leaf. Love notes from the universe, I love it!
Ok so this week I am sharing several photosets that are from last fall when Lior Allay and I went to Michigan and did our Conscious Creativity event. I’m really excited to share these with you. I have photos taken from Lior, photos that were taken by… oh gosh I have a bunch of photos… I’m sharing the photos that Doug Pierce took (Hi Doug!) and photos that were taken by a person that their screen name is Brat_trainer, he took double exposures with a roll of film that I took in Valley of Fire… what other photos am I sharing? I think that’s all of the photos I’m sharing from the event. (EDIT I’m also sharing photos from Robert Beech who shot wet plates!) It was an amazing event, it was so fun! It was one of the last events that I did before covid hit and made it so that it’s harder for people to get together in person. Somebody is mowing their lawn… or something. Do you like my new glasses? Yeah this event was super awesome, I had a really amazing fun time there, it was super great, it was really connecting, it was really fun, it was hot. It was at a permaculture farm outside of Detroit called Crossing Hedgerows Sanctuary very much recommend anyone that’s out in that area to check them out, it’s an amazing location and I’m so thankful for them giving us the ability to hang out and have our event there, that was wonderful. I’m just thinking back fondly, it was really fun. It was a creative educational community supportive fun gathering, it was just great.
What else do I want to talk about this week? Oh! I just created a pay what you can membership, the membership is either $15, $10, $5, $3 or $1 based on what the person’s ability is to pay. The $1 ones are specifically for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color only. The reason I’m able to have a pay what you can membership is because of those of you who have the higher level memberships. Your membership is allowing me to have those discounted memberships for other people, so thank you so much for that. I appreciate you so much! Yeah I’m just excited about it, I want my work to be accessible to everyone and I think this is a great way to make it accessible. I mean, I already have a ton of free stuff, but in terms of my memberships for the paid things, I want to make them accessible and this is the way I’m making it accessible, and it is thanks to yalls help because you’re already here supporting me and that allows me to support the rest of the community with cheaper options for memberships so I thank you so much! The pay what you can membership is basically the video membership at a discounted rate. I went through and did more planning and organizing and I figured out that I have enough content to go through Halloween at least! I have so much content, it’s ridiculous yall. Honestly it can probably go longer than that, that’s just what I planned out for, and that’s still including me not really creating anything.
Last Sunday I took a self portrait set for the first time since last summer, so that was interesting. I did a double exposure self portrait set with photos I took in Utah over the summer last year. I am a little bit disappointed because most of them didn’t come out. More than half of the roll is just landscapes because I should have overexposed the images of me and I didn’t, I wasn’t paying as much attention to the exposure because it was me taking self portraits and I was just trying to do it quickly and easily and I should have been more particular with how I was doing it but, it was a fun experience and that’s all that matters. I did get a handful that are really good that did come out as doubles, but a lot of the roll is just all you can see is landscapes and very very very very faint maybe see a body in some of them so… a little disappointed in myself that a chunk of the roll didn’t really come out as doubles but I love the landscapes anyway because it’s one of my favorite places.
AHHHHH I just noticed a snail! Oh my gosh so cute! I don’t know if I can show you… let’s see… I’m gonna just like, cheat it. Nope I can’t do it, I can’t show you, I mean I maybe can, lets see…. oooop this thing doesn’t want to. I’ll take a picture and show you later. I just looked down in the grass and there’s this real cute snail just like slinkin along in the grass it’s really adorable. Yeah it’s so cute, so yeah, me, excited. Ok sooooo what else do I want to tell you? I don’t think I really have anything right now. I’m focusing my efforts on gathering information and figuring out what I want to do to do my part to make Black people’s lives better. As a white person that’s my job. If you’re also a white person and you don’t know where to start, you can go to my instagram and I have a whole bunch of stuff saved in my “protests” highlight, I have 2 of them now. So check those out if you need a place to start. I’ll probably be sending out an email newsletter with a lot of resources also in the coming weeks. I’m still gathering resources and still thinking about what I want to do. I have some ideas of what I personally want to do to help my local community, I’m still figuring that out. Yeah I think that’s all I have to say today. I’m excited to share these Conscious Creativity photos with you. I love you so much! Thank you for being here. I look forward to all of the changes that happen in the future because I know more are coming and I know it’s going to be for the better of everyone and… yeah. Thank you. I love you! Have a good day.
Here’s the cute snail I saw:
Lior Allay‘s photos:
Doug Pierce‘s photos:
Robert Beech‘s photos:
Brat_trainer‘s photos:
Video members:
click here to view the full photoset taken by Lior Allay
click here to view the full photoset taken by Doug Pierce
click here to view the full photoset taken by Brat_trainer double exposed over my images of Valley of Fire
click here to view the full photoset taken by Robert Beech on wet plates + 1 medium format film double exposure
click here to view the BTS videos & photosFirst Look members:
click here to view the 10 minute vlog – an intro to Bunny Luna! (I shot this in December and haven’t done anything with it yet haha)
click here to view the unedited self portraits I took at my sister’s house last year -
Conscious Creativity 2019
Video members now have access to:
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vlog with the story being these photosets from Conscious Creativity 2019 with Lior Allay, Doug Pierce, Robert Beech, and Brat_trainer
- 11 image complete photoset taken by Lior Allay
- 36 image complete photoset with Lior Allay taken by Doug Pierce
- 5 image complete photoset with Lior Allay taken by Robert Beech
- 37 image complete photoset taken by Brat_trainer double exposed over my images from Valley of Fire
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3 BTS videos
- 20 BTS photos
First Look members now have access to:
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everything above
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10 minute vlog – an intro to Bunny Luna! (I shot this in December and haven’t done anything with it yet haha)
- 335 unedited self portraits I took at my sister’s house last year
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Bloom at the Pacific Coast in Northern California
Photo members now have access to:
- blog post with the story behind this photoset of Bloom at the Pacific Coast in Northern California (my first time seeing the Pacific ocean and TIDE POOLS!!!)
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37 image complete photoset
Video members now have access to:
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everything above
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22 minutes of BTS video
First Look members now have access to:
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everything above
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36 image complete photoset posing as fae with Lior Allay by Doug Pierce
- 11 image medium format film photoset by Lior Allay during the Conscious Creativity event outside of Detroit Michigan
- 37 image double exposure photoset by Brat_trainer during Conscious Creativity (doubled over images I took at Valley of Fire during my summer road trip)
- 5 image photoset with Lior Allay taken by Robert Beech (4 of which are wetplates!)
- 5 image photoset of Lior Allay & Robert Beech
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20 BTS photos from Conscious Creativity
- 3 BTS videos
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Bloom at the Pacific Coast in Northern California
Bloom and her partner were so generous and gave me a place to stay with them in Northern California for a few days while I was on my cross country road trip last summer. They live within walking distance of a second growth Redwood forest and it was my actual heaven to be able to walk down their driveway, around the corner, and into the forest with massive Redwoods, ferns, and the biggest clovers I’ve ever seen in my life (they were PALM SIZED!). I took a walk in the forest every day that I was there. Their house was so cozy and comfy, and I fell in love with the small town they live in when we went to the farmer’s market in the middle of the town. There were local organic farms selling their produce, vegan food vendors, live music, and barefoot people dancing or laying in the grass. We went to this special beach about a 30 minute drive from their house to walk around and it was there that I saw the Pacific ocean for the first time, and actual TIDE POOLS for the first time! Bloom and I went back the next day to take this roll of film around sunset. My experience of Northern California was simply magickal! It was so wonderful to finally meet Bloom in person (we had been friends online for years) and get to spend some time with her.
CURRENTLY: I applied for an artists’ residency here in Charlotte on the 19th and I will hopefully be hearing back from them sometime next week! I feel as if the residency was MADE for me and I really REALLY hope I get it! Click here if you’d like to see the page I put together for part of my application. With the residency I would be provided with my own studio space for 6 weeks (along with a stipend!) and I would use that space to have at least one nude gathering (but hopefully several). I feel like I’m in limbo because I don’t want to make any plans until I know if I got the residency or not. Just a few more days til I find out! EEEEK!
Photo members: click here to view the full photoset of Bloom the Pacific Coast in Northern California
Video members: click here to view the BTS video
First Look members: click here to view the images from Conscious Creativity & click here to view the BTS video