High Res is as Relative as Erotica

This post is part of the Soaring Twenties monthly Symposium, where writers, artists, poets, and filmmakers gather together to create around one theme. This month’s theme is “Resolution.”

During a conversation with a new friend about the sensuality of fruit, he mentioned that I do not shy away from the body, and instead focus on it keenly. He contrasted this to his art students who, he said, will obscure the sex or nipple instead of focusing in on its topography. Which made me think of a photo I took of a friend in college that I later submitted to an art exhibit. My instructor at the time told me the photo was weak because my focus was more on the jeans than on the breasts, but that’s what I loved about it. . . to find the sex in the denim rather than in the flesh. To notice the hunger of the rigid jeans as they opened to what was underneath. So I haven’t always focused on the flesh in art, I told him, and went looking for the photo. . .here it is! A photo I took at the age of 19, that I still love dearly.

What’s funny is, looking at it now, the definition of the denim was less crisp than I imagined, and I hadn’t recalled the absolutely elegant yet genuine placement of her hands. I fell in love with this nearly 30-year-old photo all over again. Cameras have improved in that time, as has resolution. And, of course, what you can do digitally can surpass what I could do in the coveted and cozy confines of the darkroom. But even if I were to take this again, I wouldn’t want the high resolution of hyperreality but instead enjoy the overall softness of this whole photo.

So in homage to being sexy without focusing on sex at all, I quickly made this little film called High Resolution is as Relative as Erotica (2 minutes & 36 seconds). It’s best watched on an ample monitor, but phones will likely have to do. But to get up close and personal, find a screen larger than a laptop and have at it. It’s all footage and audio (except for one voiceover) from my annual New Year’s Day hike with two of my best girlfriends.

Now back to promoting my book and writing. Enjoy the fluff and tuff.

~ Trilety