New York Art Gallery Focuses on Porn Industry

NEW YORK — A multimedia exhibit focusing on the porn industry has opened in New York City’s apexart art gallery.

“Consent,” curated by Lynsey G., a self-described porn “copywriter, reviewer, interviewer, columnist, and blogger since 2007," looks at porn as an art form through video interviews and movie clips.

The show’s press release reads, “’Consent’ aims to close the gap between what we think about porn and what we say — to collapse the space between the ‘them’ of the porn industry and the ‘us’ of the consumer.”

Lysey G maintained that her impetus for the exhibit was to show how the use of porn is everywhere, especially online but is often swept under the carpet.

“According to 2010 statistics compiled by OnlineMBA.com, 25 percent of search engine requests are for porn and over 28,000 people are looking at online porn at any given second — few of us think or talk about it honestly.

"In the Internet age, although porn is easier than ever to access, it is also easier to consume surreptitiously before ‘x-ing out’ and deleting the web history. If the statistics are even close to correct, most of us are consenting cogs in the wheels of the porn industry’s massive turnout, yet we often show a very different face to the public than the one we put on when we are alone with adult entertainment. The gap between our intimate moments and our public reactions to porn is rarely bridged with conversation or dialogue,” her press release reads.

The show features a number of porn industry notables including Britanny Andrews, Mr. Marcus, April Flores, Nyomi Banxxx, Kelly Shibari, Sinnamon Love, Fleshbot.com owner Lux Alptraum, and more.

"Porn is a huge grey area, a murky patch of swamp that’s easier to enjoy when left alone," Lynsey G writes in an essay that’s part of the show. "So most of us keep quiet about what we really think, if we think at all, shrugging, 'Who cares? It’s just porn.'”

BBW star Flores said in her video interview, "I got tired of reading and hearing that porn degrades women, because I’ve never felt degraded in this field. I always say that I felt much more degraded as a receptionist than I did, ever, in porn."

The exhibit runs March 21 through May 12 at apexart, 291 Church St., New York, 10013 beginning at 6:30 p.m.

A screening of "The Graduate" and porn parody "The Graduate XXX," will be presented, followed by a discussion.

More information about the show can be found at apexart.org or by emailing info@apexart.org.