For all the nude self-portraits I have created, I also photographed myself in underwear quite a bit. Early on, I would pose in briefs, boxers, boxer briefs, different colors and shapes. Even cataloging them with this photoshoot in 2012.
There is something fascinating about that last layer of clothing. A nude photograph says plainly: this is the human form. Underwear creates a different tension. Almost everything is visible, yet something is still held back.
That idea has a long history in art too. The male figure has often been shown with drapery or a loincloth, where covering part of the body can actually draw more attention to its shape and presence.
The light in this little bathroom became part of the series too. The glass blocks softened everything coming through the window, while the darker shower wall gave me something simple to pose against. It was an ordinary room, but for a while it became a small studio where I could keep experimenting with how much to reveal and how much to leave covered.
That is one reason my Keep It Brief gallery still belongs within Nude Soul. These photographs are not really separate from the nude work. They are another part of the same exploration of the human form, being seen, and learning to accept the person God created me to be.
And apparently every serious artistic exploration eventually gets interrupted by a cat.
Looking back, I like that this series contains both sides of the process. There is experimentation and self-consciousness, but also growing confidence. Some frames are more covered, some are in the nude, and all part of the process of growing into myself.
