PixelJail

Let’s chat about body image and its place in our sexualised fictions and fantasy.

So I don’t know if anyone’s ever seen this tumblr post before, but it’s always stuck with me since the first time I saw it, and I really wish it’s something more people would take into consideration when deciding how they feel about their own bodies.

Most of my current and past partners, as well as many friends and others I know, have the typical modern concern that perfect bodies are the only way to go, and that magazines and fashion models (with some general exceptions) are the only acceptable role models for acceptable body images.

We all know about this, it’s nothing new, buuuut that’s kind of the problem. It’s something we’re surrounded by and aware of every day, and yet people still feel awful all the time because they have fat rolls at their sides or bellies, their thighs are chubby or their ribs aren’t visible.

I believe that erotic art and pornography are healthy for the human condition, and they can serve as great fantasy or route of escapism, but I manage to keep a very separate view of that fantasy and reality. While many certainly don’t manage this, I feel that much of the community around me here seems aware of that separation, and are able to respect that erotic fiction does not need to represent reality, and that reality can still be attractive and erotic enough to fit within that fiction.
I don’t like the idea that art, porn and any other kind of erotic fiction can contribute to the impossible body standards held up to people these days, and feel that even if people do like to see that perfect bod in their fantasy, it probably still shouldn’t be the only version of body shapes they fantasize about.

While I do try and keep any images I create attractive and sexy, I do also like to think I succeed at keeping things relatively inclusive and not stuck to just that one same body shape (if anyone disagrees, please feel free to comment or note me!) and think that sometimes we shouldn’t just draw these things, but highlight them.
The image above is my latest attempt to show that we can still take these things people feel self-conscious about (check out her bulges, thick thighs, tummy, fat rolls…) and show to the world they can still be sexy, and that people do indeed find them attractive, and that they certainly have a place in our erotic fictions and fantasies.

Does anyone disagree? Do you think I’ve gone too far, or not far enough?
How would you represent these features? Would you make them more sexualised, or more realistic?
What do you think about the difference between “perfect” size 0 figures, or natural features like fat rolls & pot bellies?
Do you think your partners and friends should be working hard to shave off every bit of fat, or feel confident, beautiful and healthy?