New 'Natural Beauty' photographs & words (9 images)

Last month I premiered this Patreon. Since then, 12 wonderful individuals have joined to support my work and I've shared 22 brand-new unpublished photographs from my project 'Naked with Masks', exclusively with all of you, my patrons.

There's still a long way to go as I'm aiming to reach about $1500 per month so I could fully focus on editing my archives - but it's been a great start and for that, I'm grateful to all of you 12 champs! :)

OK, now what? Today I'm excited to share 9 new photographs from my project Natural Beauty.

The following images are accompanied by words written by the models about the overall experience. You can read more words and see more photographs on this FB album.

I came at a point in my life where I changed my lifestyle completely. I realised how much of what I did day after day was due to the mechanic of routine and not from my own choice. I wanted to cut the shit form my life and focus on what made me happy and what fascinated me. It was a tricky process, how do I know whether I give a shit or not about something I did everyday for my entire life? Do I need two different shampoos and an after shampoo and a deodorant and a razor and all the other stuff that is around me? At first, I was really unsure whether shaving was something I cared about. So I decided to give it a try and see how that felt. I remember monitoring the growth by pulling on the hair and looking at it closely every now and again. It seemed like something completely alien growing out of my body. It’s been about two years since I stopped shaving so I guess the answer is that I clearly don’t care. 

When I stopped shaving, it opened an unexpected new relationship with my body. I struggled with anorexia and bulimia for years. After being at war with my body, it has become my battleground for self-expression and empowerment. Having hair everywhere - not just in the 'acceptable' spots - created a new space for the enjoyment of sensations that I couldn’t feel when I was busy plucking my body and trying to make it fit in uncomfortable clothes I could barely move in. It was like learning to enjoy my body as a whole, without separating it between the parts that I thought were ok and the ones I wanted to change. I was sunbathing one time and the wind went through my armpit hair, which tickled my chin. I burst out of laughter; it was so odd and enjoyable at the same time. 

I got some mixed response. My mother told me: “You will shave that.” It was an order not a question. All my younger sisters were adamantly defending my choice though. I hope they keep in mind that they too have the choice when they start their puberty. My closest friends are hairy human beings too; it creates this kind of microcosm where hair crops up on bodies without problems. 

Anne Neveu, photographed May 20, written May 31 (2017)

I stopped shaving around the time I began art modelling full time. To be quite honest, it was the result of a number of things. I had started traveling a lot and not shaving is simply more convenient. I also thought it was sort of a natural progression as an art model who is mainly working in natural spaces. I have naturally grown in pubic hair as well, so it sort of went along the same lines of my being in a "natural" state. It's also a bit timeless in a certain way. Many people hire models without modification for the reason that you cannot place them in a certain time - you can date people by certain hairstyles, including pubic and armpit hair. The main reason is, of course, that I simply prefer it. I think it adds something interesting and different from what we normally see on women.

I got less razor burn! But really, I have very sensitive skin, so this was an issue for me when I would shave. In seriousness though, I think there's this idea that many women would feel self-conscious if they have hair growing where it shouldn't be growing by normal 21st century grooming standards. But honestly, I think there's a certain confidence that goes along with having it, a certain 'I do not care what other people think of my personal choices' attitude. Around the same time I stopped shaving, I also pretty much stopped wearing any makeup as well. It's more comfortable, and there's a bit of a confidence that develops. I tend to care very little about what other's think of my appearance - as odd as that sounds given my career.

People respond in different ways - as is the general rule regarding how they respond to anything. Many responded very positively - though this can also veer into a strange, fetishistic territory at times. I've had women tell me they wish they could grow out armpit hair, I've had people who thought they'd be grossed out by it actually not mind it, and I've changed a few people's minds about it. I think humans are funny creatures...we tend to think of things as foreign and strange, and then one person we know does a thing, and since that person is not a complete lunatic we say "Oh, this must be fine and even good!" And we change our minds. 

On the other end of the spectrum, I've had people intensely dislike it. They'll call me "dirty", "nasty", or they say things like "I wouldn't fuck" - as if it's an option they had (it wasn't) that they're turning down. And to be really honest, these things don't bother me at all. Armpit hair is asshole deterrent, because the people who get upset about it are the sort of people who throw a fit about personal choices that have no affect on them at all. They think that women, even women they do not know and will never come into contact with, should modify their bodies in order to suit their specific preferences. These aren't the sort of people I wish to associate with on any level, so it's nice to have such an easy way to identify them.

I think armpit hair comes down to a person's personal preference about their own body. It's perfectly fine, it's hygienic, it's more comfortable for many of us, and it’s a natural thing that can happen to adult humans and those entering adulthood. I don't tend to think of mine as a political statement on my part, or a feminist statement, but I think at the same time it is in a way, whether I would label it as such or not. It's an example of the denial of standards many women are pressured into about their bodies. It's an example of choosing to do something outside the normal standard even when you could face a bit of disdain for that choice. It's valuing my own preferences for and comfort in my body over what people tell me I should be doing with my body according to an arbitrary standard. When I'm going about my day, I don't really think about it though, it's simply a part of me as anything else about my body.

Liv Sage, photographed April 8, written July 15 (2017)

When I was growing up I had a very strong urge to conform to society's expectation of women's bodies. I also had that desire to be "grown up" before my time. I associated shaving as part of being grown up. I recall the most exciting part of getting my very first underarm hair was being able to shave it off instantly.

My opinions growing up were that excessive hair on women wasn't attractive, which is very different from my current views.

I stopped shaving 10 years ago, when I first went travelling. Whilst living out of a backpack for a couple of years, I realised what I slave I had been to various products and procedures, including shaving, that are considered "normal routine" in our society. I stopped washing my hair, using soaps, deodorant. For me it was really amazing just to be and feel natural and travelling enabled this, partly due to practical reasons but also due to having the time and space to reflect on our society.

I loved the feeling of not shaving, it was liberating and I felt more real, more feminine and more human. I felt relieved that I didn't feel the pressure anymore to adapt my body from it's natural form just because we have been conditioned to believe that women should be hairless in certain areas.

People's responses varied of course. Sometimes women would compliment me but claim they wouldn't do it themselves, some friends teased me in the early days. But now either people are becoming more accepting or I just don't notice reactions anymore. I admit it took a few years to be totally confident with body hair in all public situations, but I'm now proud to hold my arm up and expose my hairy armpit on the underground. I even enjoy any shocked or disgusted looks, as it feels important to me to educate people and exhibit what women's armpits are supposed to look like!

Pippa Percy, photographed May 8, written June 1 (2017)

At this point in life, I feel that the real question shouldn’t be ‘why did you let your armpit hair grow?’ But actually, ‘why did you shave in the first place?’

I’ve always been very hairy, as a child, teenager and now woman. I always felt very insecure about this as a teenager, thanks to the stigma perpetuated by society that it was not feminine to display the hair on your arms, legs and armpits.

I used to spend many hours shaving and also spent a lot of money on razors, creams and sticking plasters only to end up with skin irritations and unnecessary infectious spots that take an age to heal until the next time I had to start the cycle all over again. 

One day my physical and mental irritation got so intense that I realised that shaving was not healthy for my skin. I did feel slightly unsure at first, however, it felt really good afterwards as I knew that by not shaving was making my skin healthier and what I was doing was in some way liberating me from the stigmas and layers of society that I’d been put upon as a child.

I come from Venezuela, where the beauty industry for women has become a national pastime for some and an obsession for others. In the last three decades, Venezuela has won more beauty titles than any other country; Miss World, Miss Universe and Miss Wherever… Many Venezuelan mothers impose the rules of the beauty industry almost as soon as you are born, babies getting their ears pierced a week after they’ve come out of the hospital.  As soon as a camera appears at any social gathering, young girls immediately strike a fashion model pose with arms on the hips. To appear ‘perfect’, many families go into debt to pay for their daughter’s plastic surgery from the age of 13, in the hope that their princess will be talent spotted at the mall and be the next Miss Venezuela.

So in the decision to stop shaving also came the decision to take ownership of my body and start making decision about my body not just because of societies rules but because of my own body rules. I wanted to break that mental barrier I had with myself and society. I am not one to try and dictate the rules of beauty because I believe that beauty is very subjective and that the beauty that many see in my country will be considered different and out of place to many people in other countries and vice versa. Don’t get me wrong, I fully respect the decisions and changes that humans make to their own body, but I must make a big remark to this point as in my country there is a high rate of young girls that die from bad medical practice trying to get cheap plastic surgery done because they are being bullied and shamed in schools and in their local community. If anything, these simple words are to try and create awareness of how much pressure we put in young women throughout society.

We’ve spent so many years dictating how people should look, but we don’t consider the damages and the consequences of what these rules of beauty might bring upon people. It is true that at the end of the day everyone is the sole owner of their body and is able to make decision for themselves without having to account to anyone but we must do so with much awareness and care of our people and ourselves and not to please the rules of society. All these aspects made my decision to let my armpit hair grow, personally more important. 

I know that the beauty industry in Venezuela has now become a big part of the culture and a way of pride I respect that. However, I feel that as the rules of beauty might be important to be placed upon young women at an early stage in life, alongside that, we should also make it of great importance to let the same young girls, teenagers and women know that it is ok to make decisions to our own bodies without following the rules of beauty and to let them know that they should not feel powerless of who they are or what they wish to be. In the same way that having plastic surgery at a very early age is acceptable, we should be able to accept girl’s decisions to leave their body hair grow. This I feel will create a much open-minded attitude towards beauty and will hopefully stop many mental health problems that with total disregard we start to show up at a very young age. 

I’ve had the opportunity to have friends that have no specific concept of how and what the rules of beauty should come about. To me, they are the most beautiful beings I’ve ever met. They are true to their own body and shameless of who they are. If they decide to shave or not, it is because of their own choice. In moments of doubt, when I thought that not shaving was not “feminine" enough, I looked up to my two closest friends Anne and Emily. Both also didn't shave their armpits and reassured myself that what makes me feminine is not if I do or don’t shave, but actually being able to own myself and make decisions for my own body and not for the rules of beauty in society.

The response I got from others was not that stressful personally. I have not encountered many who have given a shit whether I let my armpit hair grow or not. If there were some weird looks, I was not really aware of it as I knew that there is a general understanding that everyone is getting on with their life and that everyone has their own thing to worry about. At the same time, I know that we are all creatures of judgement and we all have an opinion of something as we’ve been raised in society to have judgement in almost every aspect of live – I respect that. I also understood that we as humans are more self-conscious about ourselves than what the person next to us thinks of us. I mainly had the empowering feeling that my friends and family gave me by not really making a big deal out of it. Thanks to the rapid changes in society we’ve evolved into communities that have learned not to follow all those fashion statements that the beauty industry, the consumerist society and famous magazines like Vogue or Cosmopolitan place upon women. We’ve been able to own ourselves and not really make a big deal out of it and I feel that this statement needs to be strengthened. For those who asked kindly I answered and for those who had a mean thing to say I was very patient and never let it get to me as I knew that they just needed a bit more education and understanding on the matter.

However, for many women that choose to leave their body hair grow there is still a lot of bullying done for a simple personal decision. Which is why I feel that projects like Ben’s “Natural Beauty” is important and is helping create a much better understanding of these issues. This project creates a dialog for understanding and educate those that had no idea what’s going on. In Venezuela, like in many places of the world, there’s so much pressure put upon women to try and impress men with a specific dictatorial way of how women should look but I had a moment of realisation 5 months ago and it is the only reaction I keep in mind about my body hair. It was with my partner at the time and very good friend Chris. We started to observe our body and talk about how much hair we both had. He had barely any hair on his back and on the rest of his body where I had much more hair on my back than he did. He then told me that he loved that I had loads of hair in my armpits, my back and the rest of my body because it reminded him how beautiful and different we can all be in our very own way. By then, I was still a bit insecure about my body and myself but this realisation gave more strength to the believe that beauty is subjective in every manner and that it comes in all shapes, sizes, and even amounts of hair…

I have to give Ben a personal thank you for involving me in this precious project he’s been working on to appreciate women’s natural beauty and I would like to celebrate and congratulate all the gorgeous women involved in this project specially my two good friends Anne and Emily, as in many ways they have inspired and given me so much strength in making me proud of who I am as a women, it takes courage to reach a point where you are proud of your body in the society that we live in, well done to those who have reached that and keep going to who is still trying as it will be a very rewarding personal moment in the end. I feel that all women should try going without shaving for a time and experience their natural beauty with their body and if it’s not something that you like or enjoy about your body then you can always shave anytime.

Please celebrate your body! Own who you are and be that! At the end of the day we are all trying to figure out who we are everyday of the year as much as we are all changing and learning about ourselves every other day. Those who celebrate who and what they are, are creating a much open and safer space for those who are struggling to understand who and what they want to be in life. It might be easier said than done but give it a try. We’ll then help create a healthier and understanding society with less bullshit than there already is…

Alex Wellburn, photographed May 21, written July 10 (2017)

I stopped shaving because I have extremely sensitive skin and my hair grows quite fast. It began to get painful because of the spots and cuts from shaving so regularly and it didn’t even look nice because of how rashy my underarms were. I started to question why I had to put my skin through this every day, even though all the men that I knew weren’t expected to. I realised how ridiculous it was and from then on only shaved when I actually wanted to (which is very rare and has become less and less). 

At first I felt like I needed to hide my hair all the time in case someone saw and made a horrible comment. But after going out plenty of times without shaving I gained a lot more confidence. I feel more in tune with my body now that I’m not damaging my skin and taking more care of it. I also feel empowered by not shaving. For so long I had conformed to society’s expectations of what a woman should look like and I finally realised that I was beautiful regardless of whether I shave or not. I really inspired myself in a way, it can take a lot to go against what everyone sees as beautiful and normal, but I’m proud of myself for doing it.

I’ve had a lot of different reactions to my armpit hair. Some laughed, some looked uncomfortable and some agreed that I should be allowed to treat my body the way I want to. I often feel sad for the people who make nasty comments because they do not see the beauty of everyone’s individuality and the natural body. The people that accept me for who I am and love me no matter how I look are the people who matter to me.

I’m a strong believer that, as long as you’re not hurting anyone else, you should be allowed to do what you want with your body. Every individual has a preference for his or her own appearance. Some people wear make up and some don’t, some people have tattoos and others don’t and some people have underarm hair and others shave. I’m glad that I have realised that what I do with my body hair is my choice and no one has a right to tell me how to look. Being a part of the ‘Natural Beauty’ project has made me fall in love with my natural self and I hope that it opens people’s minds to becoming more accepting.

JoJo Pearson, photographed July 27, written July 31 (2017)

Growing my armpit hair made me feel confident and beautiful because I made the choice solely for myself, not for anyone else. And that's what I find drawn to in other people too. People who make choices and follow their own voice in what feels more true to them. It's inspiring and hella attractive!

And because, if anything, I will strive to live like the women Janne Robinson writes so beautiful and strong about in her poem "This Is For The Women Who Don't Give A Fuck", in every aspect of my life. 

The fact that it made me feel like I was making a small difference in the position women have in society strengthened the empowerment I felt. People are beautiful when left to be their true selves be it with or without armpit hair. I don't mind if other people's personal preferences are to rid of their armpit hairs, in fact, I think variety and differences are healthy, beautiful and strengthening. I still epilate my legs, I don't quite feel as comfortable letting them grow yet. Or one day I might chose to shave my armpits again, who knows (though I doubt I will), but if I do so I hope and believe it will be because I chose so for myself. Beauty is relative and changes like everything else in life. What should be withstanding is people's right to chose for themselves without being judged. Unfortunately our society is not quite there yet, but the more variety we see around us hopefully the more open and accepting we will slowly become. 

I work as an aerial circus artist and mostly perform sleeveless. Since I let my armpit hairs grow I have only had one child commenting on my hairy pits. He pointed at them and told his mother "look, she has hair". Amazing, I thought, perhaps it is his first time seeing a woman with her natural pit hair. 

I also teach circus a couple of days a week in Sweden where my students are aged 12-17. Some of the older teenagers always stare a lot at my pits; so much it is hard to keep eye contact at times. And it makes me happy. Scandinavia is generally very body-hair free, and so I'm happy they get to see an alternative, particularly at that time in their life when they are extra self conscious, in the midst of their own body changes and dealing with an ever growing body image and pressure from all corners around them. They might not choose to grow their hair, but at least they are exposed to an alternative. Body hair is generally not normalized yet, just like a whole lot of other things, and so being part of forming a richer image of body image, beauty and choices makes me feel pretty darn proud when I reflect on it.

Hege Eriksdatter Østefjells, photographed June 24, written June 28 (2017)