A nude art show — but not quite nudism

Review: Aristocratix premiere was a liberating adult clothes-free event

LOS ANGELES — Last Thursday, I attended the opening of the Aristocratix art show. Formerly known as Nude Art LA, it was last presented five years ago, before the COVID crisis. The opening is a special show where all the attendees are required to be nude themselves.

Five years ago, I came to this with my wife, daughter, and her boyfriend and met an old friend from 40 years ago. That was the clothed version.

There were two shows, one was at 6:30 p.m. and one at 9 p.m. The location downtown happened to be a block from the Persing Square metro station, so I was able to save time and a LOT of money (parking downtown is expensive!) by taking the metro. I paid and stayed for both. A fair number of others did, too. It makes sense. The round-trip commute took well over two hours, and I don’t like driving to an activity where travel time exceeds the event itself.

The rules are:

• All guests must be 21+ to enter on the night of the event. (Alcohol served.)

• For the (Un)Dress Rehearsals, all guests must disrobe for the duration of the event.

• Excessive displays of public affection and/or sexual behavior are strictly prohibited. (I guess an erection isn’t too excessive if you don’t fluff it or wave it in people’s faces.)

• Professional cameras will not be permitted. Mobile device cameras are permitted. (Unfortunately, my phone camera really sux.)

• Aristocratix will kick your ass out if you cause a ruckus.

I have to apologize in advance for the crappy photos. I couldn’t bring my regular gear, and my elderly phone has a bad camera that only worsens with age.

There were a handful 😉 of erections, particularly one guy in leather straps, one guy with a band around his nether parts, and a couple of guys who came by theirs naturally. They tended to cluster together at the bar. Nobody was what I considered obnoxious about it, and there were no complaints that I was aware of. A few people sat on the bar stools without a towel or other covering. I judged the overall attendance to be 3/4 male, a couple of hundred people total, with maybe 30-40 nudists from SCNA and other SoCal groups.

This wasn’t a specifically nudist event; it was a clothes-free event. When you get a lot of random textiles involved, you’re going to get a few who are not aware of (or interested in) nudist etiquette. I see the same thing at hot springs and Bay to Breakers. Unless you are at a venue with specific rules, it is something you quickly learn to ignore.

The best thing about an event like this for me is just the freedom to wander about naked in a location where that isn’t generally allowed. The complete acceptance by the staff, the performers and the other guests is liberating.

I tried to avoid getting identifiable random faces in photos, but it was impossible. If you are worried about ending up in a photo by a stranger, this is NOT the place to go. It’s like the WNBR, the B2B, or any other public event. (I don’t have those fears. My image is already all over the internet because I put it there.) I did try to crop out or blur people I haven’t specifically asked for permission.

The singer, top left, was really good and did a bit of a strip tease as she sang. The guy on the right was a dancer/stripper. Both kept a minimum of clothing on. The lady at the bottom was one of three figure models the guests could draw.

There was a collection of art on the walls, all featuring the nude, and I talked to many artists. (The artists and the program managers were all dressed.) There was always some kind of act going on, whether a singer or a dancer/stripper. One incredibly athletic guy did a gymnastic routine on a large ring. These performers were scantily clad but not nude.

On the left, we have a walking menu for the bar. Both models were there to wander the room and interact with guests to display the painter’s skill.

Two female professional models wandered about wearing just body painting. Drawing pads were handed out, and nude figure models posed for the guests to draw. The strangest (IMHO) was a demonstration of Shibari, a.k.a. Kinbaku-bi, meaning “the beauty of tight binding.” It is a kind of Japanese bondage performance where a young and flexible person is tied up in various ways and suspended by a rope

I don’t know if it is art, but it sure looks uncomfortable.

I couldn’t get into it. All I could think of was how uncomfortable it must be. It also seemed demeaning to the female. I realize a woman could cooperate in the venture without feeling demeaned, but I have difficulty understanding this level of bondage.

(On edit: I didn’t mean that the woman was actually demeaned by the act. I did some deep thinking and concluded that if it were not painful, a much younger and more flexible me could have been the model.)

If the performers seem mostly female, that’s partly because it is somewhat true and partly because my camera got nothing but a blur of the guy doing the rings routine and failed completely when trying to shoot the male model they had for drawing

Five of the many artists on display. I didn’t get a chance to meet the rest.

It was an enjoyable evening. I got to meet up with some Southern California Naturists Association and San Diego Camping Bares friends I hadn’t seen in a long time. I’ll probably go again next year, and I’ll recommend it to others. But I understand it is more of an adult clothes-free event, not a family-friendly nudist event. These things have their place in the universe, too.