RPA + DUPLEX present NAKED SEDUCTION

Curated by Ricki Blakesberg - Retro Photo Archive, in collaboration with DUPLEX is pleased to present NAKED SEDUCTION, Elizabeth Sunflower: 1970-1972 opening Saturday, April 22nd, with an opening reception from 4-8pm.

This series of photographs, captured between 1970 and 1972 in the burgeoning North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, centers on the role of sex workers in propelling the feminist movement from a counterculture ideal to a national conversation. The photographs are divided into unique storylines that weave together to tell a larger narrative: focusing on avant-garde exotic dancers and models that were emerging from the underground and normalizing sex in a time when the socially marginalized were misunderstood and less tolerated.

 The themes found in this series show a clear parallel between the women's liberation movement of the 1960s and 70s and current day struggles for equal rights. In Sunflower’s images we see the tension between morality, equality, and justice – a tension that is increasingly relevant today. Powerful examples of the early feminist movement, each photo depicts the strength and courage of women uniting to claim their power. 50 years later, we frustratingly find ourselves in the all-too-familiar position of protesting for many of the same rights that these women fought bravely and unabashedly for back then. As politicians and special interest groups continue to consolidate money and power in our modern landscape, these photographs are a painful reminder of the constant push-and-pull between conservatism and progressive ideals in America.

Full press release here.