Nikita Duncan
Orgasms: Portraits of Sexual Energy
Artist Statement: I have created paintings of sexual energy via the experience of the orgasm by interviewing many members of society. Orgasms: Portraits of Sexual Energy has been an exercise in transformation and an exploration of character intended to celebrate the similarities and differences among people in an unconventional way.
One of my original objectives was to make abstract art more accessible by depicting an experience we all share, but interpreting one of our more intimate moments, like orgasm, opened the door to many possibilities. A major theme of Orgasms is the sublimation of one kind of energy into another. I have taken the words and feelings that others have shared with me and turned them into a painting in an attempt to create a language that is unique for this series and for each portrait within the series.
The interviewees' description inspires the form, and the energy inspires the palette. Energy includes everything that is not said, such as tone of voice and body language. Orgasms themselves are raw and unfiltered, however, as they are verbalized they become more refined and manipulated. This affects how the paint is applied and layered. I take as many details as I can into account as I create compositions because it is morally imperative for me to remain as truthful as possible to the individuals whose portraits I paint, just as they have been generous in sharing such deeply personal experiences with me.
It is my hope that through these portraits and their accompanying interviews the audience will adopt a more positive attitude about the different ways people express themselves... I want to offer people another way to understand their desires while gaining a greater appreciation of themselves and each other.
One of my original objectives was to make abstract art more accessible by depicting an experience we all share, but interpreting one of our more intimate moments, like orgasm, opened the door to many possibilities. A major theme of Orgasms is the sublimation of one kind of energy into another. I have taken the words and feelings that others have shared with me and turned them into a painting in an attempt to create a language that is unique for this series and for each portrait within the series.
The interviewees' description inspires the form, and the energy inspires the palette. Energy includes everything that is not said, such as tone of voice and body language. Orgasms themselves are raw and unfiltered, however, as they are verbalized they become more refined and manipulated. This affects how the paint is applied and layered. I take as many details as I can into account as I create compositions because it is morally imperative for me to remain as truthful as possible to the individuals whose portraits I paint, just as they have been generous in sharing such deeply personal experiences with me.
It is my hope that through these portraits and their accompanying interviews the audience will adopt a more positive attitude about the different ways people express themselves... I want to offer people another way to understand their desires while gaining a greater appreciation of themselves and each other.
Selected portraits
Click painting for details.
Selected interviews
Nikita's Orgasm 2007, 24" x 24", acrylic and oil on canvas
Favorite colors: "Cobalt, black and red."
"This was the very first painting that I did in this series of orgasms. I wasn't actively thinking about this painting as an orgasm until it was near completion. It originally started out as a self-portrait, but rather than painting a realistic representation of myself, an explosion of color was what felt most true. I remember thinking, "This is my energy... I am an orgasm!"
Unlike the other portraits, I wasn't answering questions about my sexual experiences or including other aspects involved in having an orgasm. I was most concerned with feeling, energy and the interactions of the colors."
Artist interpretation: As you know, this was the beginning. The painting was primarily based on feeling. Nothing was consciously planned, instead it unfolded as every brushstroke was a reaction to the ones before it. Rather than representing my sexual energy, I focused on who I was under all the layers - under my clothing, skin, language. I wanted to get to the core and express that. I used whatever colors I had nearby that struck my fancy.
Artist interpretation: As you know, this was the beginning. The painting was primarily based on feeling. Nothing was consciously planned, instead it unfolded as every brushstroke was a reaction to the ones before it. Rather than representing my sexual energy, I focused on who I was under all the layers - under my clothing, skin, language. I wanted to get to the core and express that. I used whatever colors I had nearby that struck my fancy.
Ashley's Orgasm, 24" x 36", acrylic and oil on canvas
Favorite colors: "Bright red, all shades of blue- I adore the color of the ocean, lilac."
"It depends on whether I'm giving them to myself or someone gives them to me. I have a hard time during intercourse- I've had maybe three orgasms that way and I have to do all the work. I can't figure out if it's their fault or mine because the sex is good, but the climax is always because of my efforts. Oral sex is different because I come hard and quite frequently. It's intense, almost painful. I have a hard time letting guys do that to me because to me it's the most intimate sexual act on the planet! I can't think of anything that would make me feel more close to a person. Only two people have done that to me. I often wonder what it would be like to have sex with a woman because we'd both be doing the most intimate act to each other.
I've been giving orgasms to myself since I was three. I can remember the first time too, I was on the piano stand and I was rubbing my pelvis against the wood of the stand thinking I had to finish before my mother got out of the shower. Now there are three ways I usually do it. I'm either grinding against something, using a toy, or using my hand. When I'm grinding into something and clenching my muscles the orgasms are really intense. I don't use this method unless I'm about to go to bed because I get tired afterwards. I also have two vibrators because I can't get that feeling on the inside. Those orgasms feel shallow to me. They're surface orgasms and I'm not satisfied afterwards. I'm the least comfortable touching myself with my hands. Every woman should be comfortable with her vagina, but I'm not quite there. I'm a big advocate of masturbation, but when I do it with my hand I feel kind of dirty afterwards. Growing up I felt quite guilty about the whole thing but after taking Social Constructions of Sexuality in college, my sex life totally changed. It made me more open and now I tell all my friends to masturbate all the time.With guys I tend to be louder. It's not fake- I don't fake, ever. Maybe one time in my sexual career I did. I feel like part of it has to do with the privacy, at home I keep it quiet because I care about my pleasure more than some of the gentlemen I've been with. I once had a guy tell me I was the loudest girl he'd ever been with. I don't like it when guys are like "Shhh." I'm like "No, I want to be loud!"
I met this guy in Spain. He was a Romanian model. He was by far the most beautiful man I had ever seen, but an asshole in every other way. I saw him outside a bar and gave him a once over. He stared back at me and then followed my friend and I down the street. I was startled that he followed me and while I was looking back at him I stumbled over a dancer and into another bar. He kissed a girl on the cheek, who was actually his girlfriend, and then came and found me. This guy was, in general, thoughtless. He took me outside behind the bar and kissed me and then took me to the park and finger fucked me. I was moaning out loud because I couldn't help it. People were walking by and I didn't care. It was so public and I was having a lot of fun. We had a three day affair. We were at his apartment and he wanted to keep it quiet, saying he wanted to be respectful to his roommates, but I didn't want to censor myself. He insisted on doing it without a condom, and called me a child in Spanish if I wanted him to wear one. Doing it without a condom made it intense, but yet again I couldn't come. I didn't orgasm with him once. What made this experience a great was not the sex, but because I was alone in a foreign country and did what I wanted, how I wanted, without worrying about what others thought. There was no shame, it was extremely liberating. I met this beautiful stranger and had some lingering body issues, but I put that aside and just went for it and have never felt sexier."
Artist interpretation: Her orgasms may be elusive sometimes, but Ashley is a very sensual person. Her orgasm, represented by the red ball in the middle of her portrait, is central but somewhat secluded from other aspects of her portrait. The sensual energy of the red and purple permeate the rest of her portrait and inject warmth into an otherwise cool painting. I represented her lovers in black- they're almost a garnish on her blossoming sexuality. And the black lines (lovers) never quite reach the red circle (her orgasm). There's a kind of isolated quality to her experience, but I interpreted her energy as becoming more and more liberated, so the composition radiates from the middle outwards.
"It depends on whether I'm giving them to myself or someone gives them to me. I have a hard time during intercourse- I've had maybe three orgasms that way and I have to do all the work. I can't figure out if it's their fault or mine because the sex is good, but the climax is always because of my efforts. Oral sex is different because I come hard and quite frequently. It's intense, almost painful. I have a hard time letting guys do that to me because to me it's the most intimate sexual act on the planet! I can't think of anything that would make me feel more close to a person. Only two people have done that to me. I often wonder what it would be like to have sex with a woman because we'd both be doing the most intimate act to each other.
I've been giving orgasms to myself since I was three. I can remember the first time too, I was on the piano stand and I was rubbing my pelvis against the wood of the stand thinking I had to finish before my mother got out of the shower. Now there are three ways I usually do it. I'm either grinding against something, using a toy, or using my hand. When I'm grinding into something and clenching my muscles the orgasms are really intense. I don't use this method unless I'm about to go to bed because I get tired afterwards. I also have two vibrators because I can't get that feeling on the inside. Those orgasms feel shallow to me. They're surface orgasms and I'm not satisfied afterwards. I'm the least comfortable touching myself with my hands. Every woman should be comfortable with her vagina, but I'm not quite there. I'm a big advocate of masturbation, but when I do it with my hand I feel kind of dirty afterwards. Growing up I felt quite guilty about the whole thing but after taking Social Constructions of Sexuality in college, my sex life totally changed. It made me more open and now I tell all my friends to masturbate all the time.With guys I tend to be louder. It's not fake- I don't fake, ever. Maybe one time in my sexual career I did. I feel like part of it has to do with the privacy, at home I keep it quiet because I care about my pleasure more than some of the gentlemen I've been with. I once had a guy tell me I was the loudest girl he'd ever been with. I don't like it when guys are like "Shhh." I'm like "No, I want to be loud!"
I met this guy in Spain. He was a Romanian model. He was by far the most beautiful man I had ever seen, but an asshole in every other way. I saw him outside a bar and gave him a once over. He stared back at me and then followed my friend and I down the street. I was startled that he followed me and while I was looking back at him I stumbled over a dancer and into another bar. He kissed a girl on the cheek, who was actually his girlfriend, and then came and found me. This guy was, in general, thoughtless. He took me outside behind the bar and kissed me and then took me to the park and finger fucked me. I was moaning out loud because I couldn't help it. People were walking by and I didn't care. It was so public and I was having a lot of fun. We had a three day affair. We were at his apartment and he wanted to keep it quiet, saying he wanted to be respectful to his roommates, but I didn't want to censor myself. He insisted on doing it without a condom, and called me a child in Spanish if I wanted him to wear one. Doing it without a condom made it intense, but yet again I couldn't come. I didn't orgasm with him once. What made this experience a great was not the sex, but because I was alone in a foreign country and did what I wanted, how I wanted, without worrying about what others thought. There was no shame, it was extremely liberating. I met this beautiful stranger and had some lingering body issues, but I put that aside and just went for it and have never felt sexier."
Artist interpretation: Her orgasms may be elusive sometimes, but Ashley is a very sensual person. Her orgasm, represented by the red ball in the middle of her portrait, is central but somewhat secluded from other aspects of her portrait. The sensual energy of the red and purple permeate the rest of her portrait and inject warmth into an otherwise cool painting. I represented her lovers in black- they're almost a garnish on her blossoming sexuality. And the black lines (lovers) never quite reach the red circle (her orgasm). There's a kind of isolated quality to her experience, but I interpreted her energy as becoming more and more liberated, so the composition radiates from the middle outwards.
Aron's Orgasm, 36”x 48", acrylic and oil on canvas
Favorite colors: "Bright colors. I like the flamboyancy and depth of color."
"Orgasms are spectacular. I don't focus on the feeling of the orgasm. I focus on the moment that I'm in. Orgasms come second to the connection of sharing my body and having someone share their body with me. The apex of lovemaking comes in complete openness and comfort. They start well before I'm actually in the literal process ejaculating. There's a very enjoyable sensation telling me the orgasm's coming. It goes away and then comes back again. It builds from enjoyable to climactic and amazing. There are intervals. It builds and builds and builds!
There's a second climax within the orgasm, this is the magical part where everything gets released. When the second climax subsides, there are instances where I loose my hearing. I can hear my own breathing though. I'm almost completely shut off to things around me; it brings me into my own inner being for about 30 seconds to a minute. There's a medium-tone humming sound that drowns everything out. Afterwards the only things I hear are really obscure things like the neighbor's AC unit, things that I would not hear normally. The head of the penis is where most sensation takes place. The other sensation is a beautiful, magical floating energy or aura that's around my partner and I. The best ones are when it's simultaneous with my partner. I am quiet. I'm resistant to being loud; it's a turn-off to myself. I'm calm. I'm sensitive to my partner's needs and communication is huge. I want to be exploratory, so knowing what she likes is really important. It must be mutual."
Artist Interpretation: Aron asked for bright colors and he got them! The white wavy bits in the middle represent the two climaxes he feel within the orgasm. The second wave in the top left is a little less neat because that's the one where "everything gets released". All the "clues" that indicate an orgasm is coming are the playful shapes surrounding the phallic form that is moving diagonally from the top left to the lower right area of the canvas. This portrait has an underwater feeling because in the moment he has shut off the outside world and been brought to his "own inner being". But because he generally focuses on experience he and his partner are sharing, the composition, like Aron, is very open and receptive to energy around himself. Everything is harmonious and the forms are almost dancing with one another.
Adam's Orgasm, 24" x 36", acrylic on canvas
Favorite colors: "Cool colors, purple, green, blue, black, white."
"My orgasms are really tense and tight. My muscles constrict a lot. Sometimes I will throw out my neck! It's like I'm being stretched like taffy, it can be painful. It's like my veins are being filled with syrup and it goes down into my legs. My upper body spasms and I make choking noises, some guttural gasping. Usually I'm concentrating on not hitting my head on something hard. I like to think of my toes and what they're doing. There was one guy I was with who always called attention to his feet so I can't help but think of that. My emotional state is like a stasis. I'm really conscious of what my face is doing, it's a ridiculous expression- it should never be seen! I have no idea what's going on inside of them but I don't think they're having as much fun as me. My body's like a little spring. Orgasms are better by myself because I'm not thinking about how I appear to others. Afterwards it's like I'm not tired, I could eat some popcorn or call my mother. There's been one or two that have wiped me out though. I feel like I have wings that are growing out of my back and my shoulders get thrown back. The energy level is like a quick ascent and then a plateau, it goes down, goes up, and then down again. I was Mormon so religious imagery seems fitting; it's hard for me to talk about sex without feeling blasphemous."
Artist interpretation: Adam is an extremely charismatic person, so I needed to use a powerful image to compliment his personality. When he mentioned he liked religious imagery I immediately visualized his portrait as you see it now- Jesus in rapture. Although, in this case, he's being healed rather than crucified. Because he doesn't like his facial expressions to be seen, I hid his face. There's a subtle hint of silver wings coming out of his back, and a little curl of pleasure around his toes- areas that he's paying attention to. He also said that the pleasure rises and then plateaus and then rises and falls again, which I represented in the movement of the waves swirling around his body. They eventually dissipate around the top of his head because for him the pleasure usually tapers off after climax.
Orgasms: Art & Psyche
Includes all 41 portraits and interviews. Introduction by Veronica Monet and foreword by Dr. Philip Zimbardo.
Get your copy here
Visit the Orgasms: Art & Psyche site
Submit your orgasm story
Copyright © 2010 by Nikita Duncan
