Nude Photos From Maggie West's “98” Project Fight Slut-Shaming

Maggie West is no stranger to nudes. In the past, the photographer has photographed subjects in the buff for her book 23, which explored the gender and sexuality of two dozen cis and trans people, as well as for smaller, single-model shoots. But it’s the context of her latest project, "98" — set to debut October 1 in conjunction with The Amber Rose Slutwalk, a march protesting sexual violence against women and related issues like slut-shaming — that makes the nakedness in her photos feel so new.

“A few months back, I saw that Slutwalk was putting together a group art show to be held during the event,” West tells Allure. “Rather than applying for the group exhibit, I asked if they’d be open to a solo installation. We moved forward with "98" soon after.”

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"98" takes its title from statistics — specifically, that an American is sexually assaulted every 98 seconds — and its shape from archaic ideas about purity. While West has been sharing individual portraits via her Instagram, her ultimate installation will combine those portraits across a 50-foot-long structure meant to resemble stained glass windows.

Digital rendering of the finished project.

Maggie West

In her artist’s statement about the project, West explains:

Throughout​ ​history,​ ​most​ ​women​ ​depicted​ ​in​ ​stained​ ​glass​ ​artwork​ ​are​ ​saints. ​The​ ​majority​ ​of​ ​these saints​ ​were​ ​virgins,​ ​many​ ​of​ ​whom​ ​suffered​ ​gruesome​ ​violent​ ​deaths​ ​rather​ ​than​ ​lose​ ​their​ ​’purity.’ ​The Catholic​ ​church​ ​revered​ ​these​ ​women​ ​as​ ​much​ ​for​ ​their​ ​commitment​ ​to​ ​maintaining​ ​their​ ​virginity​ ​as​ ​their commitment​ ​to​ ​God. Rather​ ​than​ ​be​ ​celebrated​ ​for​ ​their​ ​purity,​ ​this​ ​piece… ​pays​ ​tribute​ ​women’s​ ​freedom​ ​to​ ​sexually express​ ​themselves​ ​and​ ​protest​ ​sexual​ ​violence.​

“The issues that Slutwalk addresses (sexual harassment, domestic abuse, gender inequality, and others) are relevant to all women regardless of appearance, sexual orientation, ethnicity or profession,” says West, “so it was important to me that "98" feature a diverse group of women.”

Maggie West / Abella Danger

The 40 women photographed — some friends and previous collaborators of West, and some West contacted specifically for the series — include Transparent’s Trace Lysette, Stephanie Beatriz of Brooklyn 99, model Isis King, artist and “BBHMM” star Sanam, and BuzzFeed Boldly’s Jazzmyne Robbins. From trans and plus-size women to adult film stars, West trains her lens on the humanity of people whose bodies and sexuality are often disproportionately stigmatized.

Maggie West / Jazzmyne Robbins

And while some of her subjects regularly disrobe for their jobs, at least one model’s appearance in the series has come as a surprise.

“If anyone [in] 98 ‘broke the internet,’ it was definitely Allison Raskin,” says West. (Raskin’s character on YouTube series Just Between Us, in which she stars with fellow model Gaby Dunn, is perhaps the last person you’d expect to take part in such a project.) “Her fans definitely had a strong, positive reaction to seeing her pose nude.”

Maggie West / Allison Raskin

As unexpected as Raskin’s participation may have been to her followers, West isn’t shocked. She views building rapport with even her most private subjects as a necessary part of the photographic process.

“It’s often only me and the model, so the shoots are usually pretty intimate,” she tells Allure. “In my experience, if a model feels comfortable during the shoot, you’re much more likely to get a genuine portrait.”

Maggie West / Heather Briganti

West bathes her models in the literal warmth of her lighting and the figurative warmth of her approach. In this safety, the models reflect strength back at her. And in addition to producing beautiful photographs, the exchange proves nudity need not be entwined with shame, as it often is in our culture.

Maggie West / Ana Foxxxby

“There is a societal perception that if a woman expresses herself sexually, she deserves to be met with embarrassment, harassment, and/or violence,” says West. “This concept manifests itself in so many ways. It’s the idea that if a girl has a lot of sexual partners, she’s not ‘girlfriend’ or ‘wife material’; the idea a sex worker can’t be raped; the idea that if a woman wears revealing clothes, you can grab her; and so on.

“For this installation I wanted to show that if a woman chooses express herself sexually, even if she displays her own nude photos in public, she still deserves the same respect as her more modest counterparts.”

"98" opens October 1 at Downtown LA’s Pershing Square.

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