Response to Sexualized Google Searches

The first thing that came to mind was how perfect all the bodies were. They were mostly all tall and lean. I kept thinking about the shoot from last year, that was exhibited at Fort Andross, where students took nude photographs of Bowdoin students - playing frisbee, running on the treadmill, etc etc. What I most enjoyed out of that exhibition was the fact that the photographs weren't sexualizing these people. They weren't focused on the breasts or the penises, but on other parts of the body as well. Though I do have to say that the searches were about human sexual behaviors. 

One thing that really struck me was how uncomfortable and indifferent I felt about these photographs. Indifferent because I'd seen these...we have a very traditional view of the human body, and seeing them alone doesn't strike me as anything different anymore. This is why I found the exhibition last year so striking - it was about breaking this idea of nudity, and being able to  be comfortable with your body with other people. The individual naked body is hardly surprising. On the other hand, I felt uncomfortable with a few of the photographs, specifically the BDSM and fetish ones (I assume). As it is not a lifestyle that I partake in, I find it difficult to understand. I also see it more as pornography, with its intent being to sexually arouse the viewer. Personally, I find it difficult to understand pornography as art. I've battled this back and forth in my head as I looked at the photographs - but if art is to elicit some sort of emotion in the viewer, and pornography is to elicit a sexual emotion in the viewer, then shouldn't it be considered as art? Yet, I feel as though art is up for grabs - it is open for interpretation, but pornography is vying for one interpretation. Secondly, a few photographs put in the powerpoint argues the point for many feminists against pornography - that it objectifies women. Though, we may not know if the woman wanted the photograph to be shot as it was, that she had control in her poses and concept, this is something that can be taken from it. 

Lastly, I found the video games photographs to be interesting as well. I've read that pornography has been the technological forefront. Pornography has been credited behind the driving forces of DVDs and other technology...which makes perfect sense, as the better and faster the technology is, the easier and more discreet pornography can be made and received. Thus, what I found interesting is that, even though there is better technology to make pornography more discreet to use (i.e. Google's Chrome invisible window), it is at the same time being pushed in the forefront of different types of media (i.e. video games).