If you think of yourself as a pro-sex feminist, your godmother is coming to town. On Friday, April 27, sex expert Betty Dodson, author of the masturbation manifesto Sex for One, is giving a presentation of her erotic art. Aside from her writing and artwork, Ms. Dodson—who is now in her 70s—spent 30 years conducting masturbation workshops in which groups of women would talk, explore their own bodies, and masturbate together. She now writes an advice column for Bust magazine.
Do you think of yourself as a sex worker?Yes, in that I'm doing hands-on teaching with women clients. Although I no longer run the Bodysex Groups, my private practice is basically a workshop for one. However, my friends who are sex workers providing male clients with oral sex or intercourse do not feel that I qualify as a sex worker. They don't think my risk factor is as serious as theirs. There has never been a (legal) precedent set for a surrogate partner in a therapeutic setting.
Even though I love what I do, it's sometimes tiring to create such intense experiences for people. How do you cope with putting out that much sexual energy all the time?My personal sex life has ebbed and flowed over the years. At first, I was convinced that sex energy begets more sex energy, but mine has rarely been directed toward one other person. There were periods where the women's groups were my primary sexual outlet. At other times during long creative work phases, masturbation was nearly exclusive. At the beginning of 2000, I did find romantic love and sex again and it consumed most of my time and energy. As I age, my definition of what sex is has expanded greatly to include thinking, drawing, writing, speaking, and teaching about sex, and actually having sex with another person. It's all part of being sexual.
Have you ever taught classes for men where you touched their bodies and/or they had orgasms? How does that feel different than teaching all-female classes?I ran several all-men Bodysex Groups. I touched [the men's] bodies, hugged them, and did a few genital massages to demonstrate different kinds of touching. The whole idea of masturbation groups for both women and men was to create an opportunity to share our orgasms in a social setting instead of always keeping masturbation restricted to a private act.
How has American culture's view on sexual art changed since you began showing your work? What's your guess as to where we'll go in the future in regards to artistic depictions of sexuality?While there is far more porn and general sex information available to people these days, I feel American society as a whole has moved backward. I would hope that the future of sexual depictions will go beyond the standard imagery of modern pornography where the female body is modified to appeal to the lowest common denominator of T & A. My lecture is a visual walk through the different phases of my sex life. Our sex lives can change as dramatically as we will allow.
Betty Dodson appears Fri April 27 at the Little Red Studio, 750 Harrison St, 328-4758, 9 pm, $20.
FRIDAY 4/27
CLUB NIGHT AT THE CUFFNo cover for leather, bear, motorcycle, or rodeo club members (requires membership card or club colors). Also, no cover for those with Club Seattle or Basic Plumbing cards. Cuff, 1533 13th Ave, 323-1525, $3 before 11 pm/$4 after, 21+.
SATURDAY 4/28
LITTLE RED STUDIO PRESENTS BETTY DODSONSex expert/artist Betty Dodson gives a slideshow presentation of her erotic art. Little Red Studio, 750 Harrison St, 328-4758, www.littleredstudioseattle.com, 8:30 pm, $30, reservations recommended.
BI-CURIOUS? FOR GIRLS WHO WANT TO DATE GIRLSDating basics for bisexual women: tricks for writing that personal ad or finding the events and places to meet other bi-women, and etiquette advice. Please bring a notebook and pen. Wet Spot, 1602 15th Ave W, 270-9746, www.libidoevents.com, 3:30—5:30 pm, $25, membership not required.
EROTIC IMPACT FOR EVERYDAY FUCKINGThis class will cover safety information and aftercare related to impact play, and then explore punching, spanking, slapping, falling, takedowns, and other techniques. Wet Spot, 1602 15th Ave W, 270-9746, info@wetspot.org, 3:30—7:30 pm, $35—$45 sliding scale, membership not required.
SUNDAY 4/29
GLOBAL LUCID DREAMING EXPERIMENTJoin the tens of lonely people who will fall asleep tonight fantasizing that their consciousness will sail out of their bodies and meet one of the other lonely people and have awesome soul-sex. Your bed, whenever.
ORAL AMBITIONS: FELLATIOLearn how to give great head! Babeland sex educators discuss favorite fellatio tips and tricks. Open to all genders and orientations. Babeland, 707 E Pike St, 328-2914, 7:30 pm, $30.
RAIN CITY JACKS PARTYRain City Jacks is a private, men-only JO club that's alcohol-, smoke-, and attitude-free. Membership required, raincityjacks.org or rc@raincityjacks.org, 1—4 pm.
