Abricó Beach, Rio de Janeiro

Rio de Janeiro’s Praia do Abricó nude beach lies far away from the famous Christ the Redeemer statue and Sugarloaf Mountain, but it is well worth the effort to get there. Abricó is located just to the east of Grumarí beach, a favorite surfing spot in the extreme southwest of the Rio metro area, aContinue reading “Abricó Beach, Rio de Janeiro”

Nude Physics 4: Vibrations

I believe that our bodies interact with the space around them in ways that are more complex than simply “taking up space.” I don’t think these interactions are mysterious, necessarily, just little known or poorly understood. One of these spatial interactions, for example, would be the release of pheromones or other hormones that send amorousContinue reading “Nude Physics 4: Vibrations”

Nude Physics 3: Luminosity

I’m neither physicist nor physician, so it’s only with a bit of creative license that I’m exploring, in this series of posts, certain physical properties of our bodies when nude. The first two posts in the series have featured concepts from physics that are perhaps more obviously applicable to our bodies: surface area to volumeContinue reading “Nude Physics 3: Luminosity”

Nude Physics 1: Surface Area to Volume Ratio

Naturism and social nudism involve the exposure of voluminous parts of our bodies that are obsessively covered by the norms of Western society. No matter what size your breasts, genitals, or buttocks, you are uncovering some expansive corporeal real estate when you undress, and this is one of the most celebrated aspects of naturism, thatContinue reading “Nude Physics 1: Surface Area to Volume Ratio”

Don and Doff

Don and Doff were leprechauns who lived beyond the rainbow’s end. Don scrubbed his shoes and cleaned his coat: Saint Patrick’s Day was ’round the bend. “Hey Doff! Get off your duff and wash your clothes! Today is March the 12th!” “So what?” said Doff. “I’m ready. Just…” “Just what?,” asked Don, impatient elf. “I’dContinue reading “Don and Doff”

Benevolent Exhibitionism

A couple of well-written and fair-minded recent articles in the Montreal Gazette have brought renewed attention to the intersections between nudism and exhibitionism. The latter term, most of the time, has a negative connotation except for people who enjoy it. But I think there is also a “benevolent exhibitionism” of the kind in which manyContinue reading “Benevolent Exhibitionism”

Brazilian Naturist Pioneer Luz del Fuego

A reflection for today by my friend Jorge Bandeira, fellow naturist and artist, and co-founder and current president of the ten-year old naturist group GRAUNA based in Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. My translation: On the 96th Anniversary of the Birth of Luz del Fuego  [Luz del Fuego, or “Firelight,” was the stage name of Dora Vivacqua,Continue reading “Brazilian Naturist Pioneer Luz del Fuego”

The Fig Leaf Fetish

Someone told me recently that naturism kills eroticism; in other words, that so much constant nudity eliminates the thrill of sexual anticipation. I don’t always agree–context is everything–but I know that this point of view is widely sustained at different times and for different reasons. Naturists – always having to defend that we’re not generallyContinue reading “The Fig Leaf Fetish”