Dita Von Teese: Bound to provoke
2009 | 7:13 pm
Submission is power, says Dita Von Teese, when she’s not bound and gagged.
The queen of the slow, sequinned striptease is on the phone, talking sex, seamed stockings and more sex.
What are you wearing right now, Dita?
Actually, I didn’t even have to ask. The woman who was born Heather Sweet, who claims that without make-up she’s an ordinary looking natural blonde from Michigan state, has come straight from work-out to interview.
“I wear, like, black simple Capri pants and a shapely T-shirt.”
No baggy trackpants?
“I don’t like looking in the mirror and feeling sloppy. It’s not good for me and it’s not good for how I feel about myself, so why do it?”
Dita Von Teese is a self-made sexpot who makes no excuses for her particular brand of manufactured feminity.
“A lot of women are looking for an alternative role model for ‘sexy’ than just that natural beauty who looks great in a bikini running on the beach with blonde hair flowing and no makeup.
“That’s like our beauty icon of modern times. I never felt like I could fit into that, because I am not that. Maybe I stand for someone who is an alternative, who is telling people that you can make yourself into something sexy instead of being born with it.”
The Art of the Teese, re-released this month, is the step-by-step bible to being Dita.
“Glamour above all things is what I say,” she writes in the introduction.
“There was a time when a lady dressed to the nines no matter what her destination. This great girl wore seamed stockings and garter belts every single day. She curled her eyelashes and she set her hair in luscious waves.
“She painted her lips a flushed, rich scarlet. Wherever the day took her, she wore high heels and satin gloves to her elbows, soaring cocque feathers and veils of the finest netting over her eyes. And so do I.”
Take-home message: Anyone can be Dita if they can afford a $10,000 corset that sucks 16cm off their waist; if they have time to paint their nails perfectly; if crucially they don’t mind getting their gear off.
Von Teese, 36, has led a worldwide revival of burlesque, the art of getting all-but-naked to music, that had its heyday when dancers such as Sally Rand and Gypsy Rose Lee dominated the American stage.
And, she says, unless you’re prepared to strip, you’re not honouring history.
“You’re taking away from what those women did. If they did a strip tease in the 1930s down to pasties and a g-string, that’s what I’m going to do, and I don’t have any respect or admiration for pseudo-burlesque and celebrities who dance around the stage singing Big Spender with a feather boa.”
Recently, at the French Crazy Horse cabaret, Von Teese accidentally pulled down her g-string.
“The crowd went wild and I was so terrified for a moment and then I remembered I was in Paris … and I went, ‘oh, I forgot, I’m allowed to do this’.”
In the increasingly conservative United States, she says, there is the risk of an arrest for indecent exposure.
“Which sounds like a good time to me, actually. It’s fantastic when you look at the old publicity photos of the stars being dragged off in nothing but a mink coat and their g-string. They loved it. It was great for business.”
Von Teese hardly needs added exposure. Multiple magazine covers, advertising deals, a divorce from metal singer Marilyn Manson, and an alleged year-long stint of celibacy have kept her firmly in the headlines.
“It was a strange thing,” she says. “When I was going through the most traumatic parts of a public divorce, I discovered I was one tough bitch.
“I was in the thick of it, but I was still able to go out on stage and convey fun and sensuality and feel powerful. It was a moment when I realised I could do anything … and I was really happy to learn that lesson.”
Actually, she’d like to clarify that celibacy rumour: “I was speaking very seriously about how it was to be divorced and that it was difficult for me to get back into the swing of things and it took some time. But make no mistake, I was having all kinds of fun. I was never, ever celibate.”
The pin-up girl whose used stockings sell for $85 on the internet (she thinks that’s sweet, not sleazy), and who, literally, has a fetish flipside (the second half of her book is big on leather, boots and binding), insists she’s a girl’s girl whose biggest fans are women.
“I’m not the one trying to seduce your boyfriend when you walk out of the room, I’m not the one who gets drunk and dances on the table and wants to expose herself to everyone and prove her sexuality.”
Von Teese says she wants to be remembered as someone who evolved, not revived, burlesque. Most famous for the routine where she sponges off in a giant martini glass,
“I have, like, 20 other shows that are new and unique to burlesque”.
She is not, she says, the world’s most beautiful or talented woman. “I’m very average in many ways, but I have a lot of ambition and a lot of drive and all of it comes from a very genuine place.”
The Art of the Teese celebrates Dita, variously, as a femme fatale, a showgirl and a movie goddess. She poses with powder puffs, astride a lion and in a bath.
But she also appears gagged and trussed; she sports a whip, eye mask and black boots and says, “for me, fetish is a sensual magical charm”.
“The definition of feminism is about having the choice,” says Von Teese.
“When you put yourself in that position as a submissive, especially in modern times, it’s by choice. I’m totally controlling that, I chose the outfit, I chose the lighting and I had the idea … I like the idea of the two-sided book, the good girl versus the bad girl and the fact that we can be all of those girls. It’s up to us to decide.”
Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/entertainment/2076053/Dita-Von-Teese-Bound-to-provoke/
MaggieDelena Latex Clothing is hand made couture clothing made with premium materials and custom tailored to compliment and enhance the figure. From classic silhouettes to edgy hardcore designs, MaggieDelena presents fashions for every facet of the fetish underworld.
3. Do you consider yourself a Latex fetishist or fashionista?
5. How difficult is it to produce a Latex garment- what is a short summary of the process itself, and how long does it take?
7. How do you feel about Latex being embraced by more mainstream designers in recent years?
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How would you define Burlesque and Pin up or Striptease, is there a difference between the 3?
Where are you looking for your new burlesque wardrobe?
In this day and age, I think we tend to take some of our freedoms completely for granted. Fetish wear, and fetish-related art, have become not only mainstream and “socially acceptable”, but there appears to be more proliferation and pilfering from our peculiar proclivity than at any other point, ever before. While we certainly have cultural fashion icons like Karl Lagerfeld, Vivienne Westwood and, to a lesser extent, even Thierry Mugler or Betsy Johnson to thank(?) for that, it might be a nice exercise to pay homage to some of those ground-breaking artists who came long before. Some of them, such as Irving Klaw for instance, have had their stories well documented. Some of the other early trend-setters are honoured, with admitted brevity, below:
John Alexander Scott Coutts (“John Willie”): The artist known as “John Willie” started his career as a fetish photographer and illustrator in Australia before moving on to greater pursuits as the creator of the hugely iconic and popular Perils of Sweet Gwendoline comic book series. John Willie was also the primary writer, artist and photographer for the old Bizarre magazine, which was published out of New York City (when he could afford to print) between 1946 and 1959. Copies of Bizarre have been reformatted into book form and is available from most bookstores in a neat, two-volume set. John Willie is generally recognized as the “Father” of modern bondage art – and his work had obvious influence on later, notable artists such as Eric Stanton and Eric Kroll. John Willie’s themes were invariably always the same: a poor heroine is captured, and tightly tied and gagged in a (usually) compromising position, and is almost always portrayed outfitted in extreme high heeled shoes or boots, gloves, corsets and some element of frontal nudity. He was also quite fond of potraying himself as the evil villain in many of his illustrated stories (very few of which, strangely, actually had definitive conclusions). The character most associated with John Willie as a self-portrayal is usually named Sir Dystic D’Arcy and his “partner in crime” was usually a raven-haired evil vixen called The Countess or sometimes U69. John Alexander Scott Coutts was forced to stop his illustration work in 1961 when it was found he had developed an inoperable brain tumour. He relocated to England and, after destroying most of his archives (the few that survive today are the only remnants of a once prolific portfolio), he died. He was 61 at the time of his death.
Gene Bilbrew (“ENEG”):Â For over twenty years, the artist most commonly known as “ENEG” (Or “Gene” spelled backwards) graced the pages of several publications and periodicals until suddenly disappearing from view completely and somewhat ominously in 1974. Like so many that came after him, Gene Bilbrew could thank his initial success as a bondage and fetish artist to the influence of Eric Stanton, who introduced him to Irving Klaw in 1951. Bilbrew also used the pseudonyms Van Rod and G.B. Bondy. Later artists, such as Penthouse Magazine’s Ron Embleton (Oh Wicked Wanda!) were undoubtedly influenced by Bilbrew’s striking, powerful imagery and incorporated many elements of his style into their own work. No topic was too off-base for Gene Bilbrew: Of any of the erotically-charged fetish artists of the “Golden Era”, he certainly wasn’t afraid to tackle any subject matter or hold back on any kind of depiction. His depictions of male dominance, female dominance, transvestism and extreme bondage (especially in relation to pseudo non-consensual type storylines, usually dealing with the capture and enslavement of ‘pure innocent’ women) are today highly prized and coveted amongst bondage artwork enthusiasts especially. There is a curious and common misconception about Gene Bilbrew: most of his most ardent fans, to this day, live under the assumption that he was caucasian. He was, in fact, an African American artist and did nothing to dispel the assumption that he was “white”. His career benefitted as a result and he continued to be prolific and popular, until suddenly disappearing completely in 1974. It has been revealed in the years since that Gene Bilbrew tragically died as a result of an accidental drug overdose in New York City. He had just celebrated his 50th birthday at the time of his death.
Hajime Sorayama: Fritz Lang is generally credited with making the female robot “sensual” and “sexy” in his landmark 1927 film Metropolis. Tokyo’s incredible native son, Hajime Sorayama, has taken the visage of the mature, sensual mechanical woman to even more dizzying heights. Sorayama is the perfect blend of “Golden Age Fetish Art” meeting “New Age”. He has been involved in a range of design and illustration elements (everything from art conception for Hollywood films to being the designer of Sony’s revolutionary robotic “pet”, AIBO), but he is without question best loved for his “biomechanical” and very sensual portrayals of mechanized women. In Europe and his native Japan especially, his collection entitled The Gynoids is still a best-seller amongst mainstream art collectors. Sorayama is one of the few artists who has truly found an audience within many genres and over many different mediums (Your Humble Narrator is the proud owner of five Sorayama originals in a very rare original medium for him). His recent, 1990′s – 2000′s era “pin-up” style fetish art pieces of sensual, dominant and submissive women have become highly cherished and in great demand among an entirely new generation of SM enthusiasts. Over the past few years, enterprising resin modellers have “copied” Sorayama’s original illustrations and made a mini-industry of casting and selling three dimensional figurines and statuettes of some of his more popular, fetish-related works (“Chained Slaves”, “Yamato” and “Amazon” series being the most coveted). In 2007, Sorayama was embroiled in an unfortunate fraud case involving a gallery owner and publisher. As a result, the verity of some of his “Limited Editon Reproductions” has come into serious question.
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I’m proud to be a woman, I feel great about it. I love the sensation of dominating a man, to see him crawl and make him feel like dust under my feet… Make him behave and act for the sole purpose of pleasing me… This gives me a rush and brings me satisfaction. Sometimes people ask me if I get aroused or turned on during a session. The honest answer is “of courseâ€! I can’t hide the fact that when I use a strap-on dildo on a man I usually get very wet, especially if the guy is handsome and well built! But people are usually surprised to learn that giving corporal punishment has exactly the same effect on me!
In the past couple of years I had the chance to model for some great photographers. I guess I love modeling because it is another area where I can play the seductress, be sexy or kinky and be weird and that’s actually fine! I do love to see my pictures on printed magazines, flyers or on the web… I guess that also makes me an exhibitionist!
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Mistress Persephone
Its important for me to live the thinks I feel, this paired with style, glamour and high quality reflects the work I have done with my wonderful photographers.
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Another Vex outfit makes a striking impression in Amber’s next film, Dirty Step Upstage. A psychological drama about the price of fame, it features her character wearing a revealing red latex dress that not only had to look awesome but also allow for an energetic dance routine. “Some of the sensuality and sexy design of the dress was determined by the film’s plot. (No spoilers! You’ll have to wait and see!) While I was online looking for inspiration, I wound up back at Laura’s website, and I discovered she was located in Chicago, where I had recently moved. I wrote to see if she was available to make another amazing piece for me and fortunately she was. It was fate.”
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H E L L
“About The Tom of Finland Foundation:
Two Killer Events this Weekend…
When it comes to career aspirations, most women don’t think whips, ropes and handcuffs. But word on the street is that many women are turning to freelance fetish work to keep up with their expenses.
‘Say it ain’t so, Joe!â€
Some Shuster fetish art can be found in an earlier Yoe book, a 2007 anthology called Clean Cartoonists’ Dirty Drawings. But the archivist admits he “didn’t know the whole story†of Nights of Horror at the time, nor had he managed to collect all 16 issues. In fact, when Abrams agreed to publish Secret Identity, “it was on the basis of the artwork alone,†not the research he was doing into the circumstances of the publication and reception of Nights of Horror.
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Who is The Fashionable Mind?
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The famous martini glass goddess, the mistress of fetish, the modern pin-up, the Queen of burlesque: 
These impressive stage shows have earned her many famous and fervent fans. Besides being known for her short-lived marriage to shock-rocker Marilyn Manson, Von Teese is a muse for many high-profile designers from Marc Jacobs, Christian Louboutin and John Galliano to Jean Paul Gualtier, Zac Posen and Louis Vuitton. Most recently she designed a new strip tease entitled “LipTeese†for her role as MAC Viva Glam spokesperson.
Polly Superstar and Barron Scott Levkoff met in 1999, shortly after Polly arrived in San Francisco from London, where she was a latex fashion designer involved in the fetish scene. They gravitated toward the same sex-positive community here, which they have tapped or morphed for the 
“Me and Scott both come from a history of fetish clubs. That was our original scene. So when we started Kinky Salon, we intended it to be a fetish club, although we were fetish by default, because that was the only way we could really dress up and be sex-positive and really do all the things that we wanted to do,†Polly said.
“People really stepped up. We basically facilitated a process by which Kinky Salon came to craft a container for itself that was intentional. Standards. Methods. Hosts. People checking in at the door. We have a lot of ideas about how to do this, but we really opened it up to people,†Scott said. “Because we wanted it to be of, by, and for the community.â€
News Item: Screen Adaptation of Classic 1980′s graphic novel Watchmen opens in theatres March 6th, 2009
The girl looked like an amputee. Positioned on all fours atop tall, metal pedestals, her eyes were wild as she moaned through a ball-gag. Short, brown locks framed her face, and her white limbs were encased in bright-yellow latex, binding the hand to the shoulder, the foot to the thigh. She wore a matching corset under her dangling breasts. Artist Trevor Brown’s paintings of cartoonish girl-children in twisted sexual positions, crippled or beaten came to mind. But this girl was real. And she was just a piece of the larger world of fetish from the now-defunct website, Insex.com.
Both Lorentzon and Bell worked for Insex.com, never as models, but as a photographer and screenwriter respectively. Lorentzon first met Scott at a fetish store and later at a bondage demonstration. She reached out to him coincidently on the same day he needed a photographer, so she joined the team and stayed there for six years. Bell got into Insex.com through Lorentzon and began writing short screenplays for his scenes. Both women enjoyed their time there, but some of their encounters bothered them, like Scott’s pushiness when he wanted the models to “play†with him after their set. Lorentzon said making this documentary became a way for her to decompress everything she experienced in the studio.