If you’ve been into Bellingam’s Lost Giants Cider Company sometime in the last month or so, you might have noticed some naked bodies on the back wall. And if you haven’t? You’ve still got until the end of the month of August to see some tastefully nude butts! Paired with a couple of pieces of poetry, courtesy of yours truly.

This showing is special, not only because it includes some new work from both Sweden and Iceland (a very important pilgrimage back to my second home in the Nordics) — but also because I started planning for it while I was back in Sweden over the spring.

Lost Giants was the first local business who stepped into the liberally-infused courage to say “hell yes” to showcasing naked art on their walls, with my first official artist feature in 2024.

And two years later, I’m back again.

Returning to Sweden was a return to a continent that celebrates the female body in a way that the U.S. is mostly unable, and unwilling, to do. I had conversations with my Swedish friends about the obstacles that I face when it comes to getting my art out in the world of America. These obstacles exist both online and in real life… and as the world becomes more conservative, unconventional artists who are pushing limits must rely on the open-mindedness of local, small businesses within liberal communities.

And if we can’t? We, the artists, will have nowhere to go.

And when those artists are telling stories of empowerment and liberation of women, who continue to get the short end of the stick in our political systems… well, to put it lightly and not-so-eloquently, it’s a huge bummer.

Over and over, I explained to my European friends about the responses I usually get when I approach American businesses about showing my work. The main one being, “we’re family friendly.”

The response in my head (because I am good at keeping my mouth shut… at least, so far) is something like, “five year olds aren’t the ones sexualizing the female body.” All of my friends in other counties are baffled that American children need to be protected from the female nipple.

Both thankfully and depressingly, stepping into Europe is like stepping into an alternate universe where the female form is not only celebrated, but has history of being worshipped.

And why wouldn’t it be worshipped? Gosh, it’s beautiful.

The moment I felt the distance of how far behind America is, and that Europe truly is an alternate universe, was when a friend asked me what we do about the nude female statues that we have.

Oh… my… goddess… I’m in the continent that is home to Denmark’s Little Mermaid and Greece’s Venus de Milo and Aphrodite of Knidos. Nude female statues are the norm. And beyond the statues, we have iconic paintings such as Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, and countless public statues that celebrate the naked human form throughout places like Italy.

Come on, guys. The country that is home of the Vatican and the Pope are doing this right. And yet, America is still drowning and strangling itself in Puritanical roots.

All of that being said, returning to Sweden gave me hope for progress. Not only when it comes to the female figure without layers of clothing, but also with female representation on an equal playing field when it comes to, well, anything really, but especially stereotypically male-dominant arenas, like mountain biking (you can read a little bit about my visit with POC headquarters over here, which reinvigorated my dreams with hopes of more female representation in the bike world).

And though returning to the turmoil that is the American political landscape was (and continues to be) challenging, having a local business support my work with a show was a beacon of that hope that I could hang onto.

Thank you to Lost Giants for showing up as a truly liberal and inclusive local business in a town that is not always as liberal as it pretends to be. This is where progress is made. One small business at a time.

And if you’ve stopped in to enjoy the art? I would love to hear how it landed for you!

Pssst… this could be you!

Thanks to temperate weather in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, I hold healing spaces for empowerment forest bathing sessions all year long. If you’re yearning to celebrate your beautiful body or heal a chapter ending in your life, I’d love to create art with you in our breathtaking landscapes. Send me an email, and let’s begin! More about my photo sessions over here.

And if you’re not feeling quite ready, but curious what life could feel like with a little more self-love? I’m taking in new self-love life coaching clients who are leaning into courage to walk the Sophrosyne Way. I’d love to connect and hear your story if that sounds like you, too.

Walking with love,
♥️ Savannah