Pink Ribbon - Two Friends

Commercial for Pink Ribbon Magazine 100% non-profit raising money to support the fight against breat cancer. Written by Grey Amsterdam, directed by Chris Palmer at Gorgeous Productions

The Nudist Dances [Poetry]

She is a nudist
An exhibitionist in her community
A statue of her own making

She believes in the goddess of earth and nature
A free spirited human
Content with her existence
A nudist that dances salsa, merengue, and tangos without clothing

The movements excite her
The moments tantalize her and put her mind in an exotic hedonism

Some will like her
Others will dislike her
Many are anxious to sunbathe with her

She is a nudist in her community, where this is somewhat accepted.

In the midst of promoting her nudity she forgets that her own son is disgusted with her.

She is a nudist
One that is content with her
One the world is not content with

A nudist in her skin
A nudist in her own right
A nudist who is comfortable with her body

She pleases herself first
She is a nudist
One who is a happy-go-lucky.



By Andrea R M Fletcher, 2003

When I Am Old I Shall Wear NOTHING!

When I am an old woman I shall wear NOTHING!
I’ll carry a towel and let my wrinkles show.
And I shall spend my pension on good wine and beach towels.
And hiking sandals, and say we’ve no money for clothes.
I shall sit down in the sand when I am tired
And gobble up desserts at potlucks and press for hugs
And run my mouth at naturist gatherings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go without my slicker in the rain
And wear in my hair the wild flowers I’ve found
And learn Akido.

You can wear nothing at all, grow more fat
And lie in the sun all day; or the shade
Or go to all the naturist gatherings
And give your clothes to Mission instead of hoarding them.

But now we must have clothes that keep us covered
And pay our rent and not moon anyone in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must meet friends for dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So more people can understand and appreciate
And enjoy their wrinkles openly, too.

By Marilyn R. Lovell
(inspired by Jenny Joseph’s poem “Warning…. When I am an Old Woman I shall Wear Purple”)

Naked In The Rain [Poetry]

Go naked in the rain
Delight in running bare,
Ignoring disapproving glance
And shunning scornful stare.

Walk naked in the rain
In pooling puddles play,
Skin all cool and tingling
And hair in disarray

Run naked in the rain
Wild and indiscreet,
Down mountain trails and country lanes
And glistening city streets.

Be naked with the rain
While the clothed run for cover,
Let the storm envelop you
Embrace it like a lover.

By Joel Delpha

Body Acceptance [Poetry]

Be comfortable in your own skin
And become your own best friend.
Open yourself to new friends, experiences,
activities and points of view.
Develop positive self-talk.
Yield not to the image-makers and yearn for
The stars but remember that peace begins
Within.

Acknowledge and work with your body the
way it is, not the way image-makers say it
should be.

Challenge and compare social and cultural mores.
Cuddle and cherish the child within.
Encourage self-respect, respect for others and
the environment.

Push past fears to permit yourself the freedom
to let down your pretenses.
Think of your whole body as a temple, not as a
collection of fragmented fantasy body parts!
Abandon the mask that you wear and appreciate
yourself for who you are, not for how you are
packaged.

Nurture your naked self as you would your own child.
Celebrate your medals of honor from scars to love handles.
Explore your sensuality and connectness with others.

By Judy Williams

Jon Watts, Maggie Harrison & "Clothe Yourself in Righteousness" [Heroes of iNAKED]

Jon Watts had been making hip hop records for 5 years before he became convinced of Quakerism.

Jon grew up a Quaker in Richmond, Virginia. But it wasn’t until his Senior year, when he recorded an album of biographical songs about the Early Friends (at Guilford College in NC… indie rock territory) for his Senior Project that he truly committed to the Religious Society of Friends.

When Jon Watts moved to West Philadelphia in 2010 to be closer to a burgeoning Young Adult Quaker movement, he was reconnected with his old friend Maggie Harrison, who had been working on a research paper for the Earlham School of Religion.

Maggie's paper was about nakedness, and she had done her homework. It shed light on the Early Friends' practice of going naked as a sign... the stories, the theology, and the implications for modern life. It was powerful. It was playful. It was kind of difficult work. And Jon was inspired.

It was a warm Spring afternoon on the campus of Guilford College in 2006. Jon had just completed his first full-length Quaker-focused album, and Maggie her first year at Guilford. Finals were going on in classrooms all over campus, and there was an air of seriosity on the quad.

In a fit of spontaneity, Jon and Maggie (who knew one another less deeply than you might imagine) stripped off their clothes to do a lap around campus, complete with celebratory yipping and attempts to climb art sculptures, hoping (in part) to give the madly scribbling students behind the open windows a temporary reprieve from the singular stress of their focused test taking.

With the Spirit as their guide, Jon and Maggie set out in 2010-2011 to bring their ministry of nakedness into an appropriately authentic public format. For Maggie, that meant exploring old texts over long hours in various Quaker libraries, exploring Nakedness in her own spiritual life, and writing a devotional pamphlet.

For Jon, it meant searching himself and engaging with his muse to write the songs for an album, always asking "what canst thou say?", with the underlying intention of radical authenticity... or nakedness.

For both Maggie and Jon, the work was difficult. The transformation was real. The product is inspired.



One beautiful Summer evening in 2011, a group of giddy Friends piled into Jon's Volkswagon van and, along with photographer Mike Goren, made the trek out to a lake outside of Philadelphia to frolic in the water and woods in the fading light (photo above).



In the video above, Jon Watts and Maggie Harrison discuss their joint multi-media project, "Clothe Yourself in Righteousness"... an exploration of "going naked as a sign" amongst Early Friends and the implications for Quakers today. This video is an excerpt of an interview for the podcast "Friend Speaks My Mind", by Madeline Schaffer. B



In the above video, a Quaker Meeting for Worship at Guilford College quickly transforms into naked quaker group streaking after some rousing ministry from Jon Watts, encouraging us to disrobe and shed these fig leaves. This is the music video for "Let's Get Naked".

TEXT/PHOTO: Clothe Yourself in Righteousness / Jon Watts.com



Clothe Yourself in Righteousness | Album from Jon Watts
Pamphlet | Clothe Yourself in Righteousness
Music | Clothe Yourself in Righteousness
Tour | Clothe Yourself in Righteousness
Blog | Clothe Yourself in Righteousness

"Getting Naked" on Facebook
Jon Watts (jonwatts) on Twitter
jonwattsmusic's Channel - YouTube
Jon Watts.com

Art Is an Attitude - Visual Poem [Art]

This is a philosophical poem that is featured in the opening segment of a video about drawing the human figure entitled: "Art Is an Attitude: The Art of Drawing the Figure".

Bill Buchman Figure Drawing