May 14, 2020
“When discussing nature, we never describe trees or mountains as “needing to lose a few”. But we use sharper lenses on ourselves. Nature’s beauty is wild, untamed, and free. We don’t square off a part of nature and say “that branch needs to get fixed” we say the whole thing is beautiful. But we’ll tear each other apart on social media if someone didn’t put on makeup or do their hair. The type of art I do forces people to use nature’s lens to look at other humans. Don’t look at this 300 lb person’s man boobs, look at BEAUTY in front of you.”
Feeling Closer to Nature through Body Positivity Art
Ru Paul says, 'if you ain't gonna love yourself, how the hell you gonna love someone else?!'
If you’ve never seen a human chameleon then you’ll be amazed by the incredible camouflage body painting by New York artist, Trina Merry. Renowned for her full body paint pieces that have taken her from one end of the world to another, Trina’s latest project using nature as her backdrop, is one that mother nature herself would be proud of.
Wanted: All Body Sizes
Currently surviving the coronapocolypse in Dallas, Texas, 40-year-old Trina continues to shock the world with her nude body painting but there’s something much deeper behind her artwork.
Body positivity art is not a new concept for Trina who consciously uses models of all shapes, sizes, and genders to represent the innate human experiences within her work.
Liberating Portrait Series
Her ‘Nature Camouflage' series was a purposely nod to the body positivity movement, giving normal-bodies fans a rare opportunity to commission Trina to give them the full nude body painting experience and the sense of liberation that comes with it.
“Getting body painted was the scariest but the best thing I’ve ever done for myself because it was self-love. Loving ourselves is the hardest to do. But I finally looked at myself and I loved myself for the first time when I dropped the robe. None of the bullshit mattered anymore. I was me- I was beautiful.”
“Nature’s beauty is wild, untamed, and free...“I hope through my artwork people are able to accept their bodies a bit more and return to a healthy coexisting relationship with nature.”
#NoFilter Voluptuous Human Canvases
Clients became one with nature as Merry picked up her paintbrush and magically blended them into the environment, using their curves and shapes as a voluptuous canvas. As natural as her background, Trina allows people to see the beauty in natural bodies, no filters, no enhancements, just normal bodies in all their glory.
Nature Offers Balance During This Pandemic
The series is also a gentle reminder, in the current global pandemic, while we may be feeling anxiety and fear, nature is the one element that will always create balance. We should treat our bodies with the same outlook we have on nature, applauding the natural beauty that we see, not tearing each other apart with a much sharper lens. Each piece takes around 30 to 90 minutes, offering a peaceful experience and an opportunity for the models to get out of their heads and see themselves in a new, positive way.
Feeling Empowered in Lake Tahoe
Painted at Lake Tahoe, Trina was commissioned by Kerri Schroder who wanted a special present for her husband. Standing center stage in the image, Kerri describes Trina’s work as ‘organic and natural’, explaining that her experience in full body paint was ‘empowering’. The finished piece is quite striking as Kerri barely pokes out of her background that wraps around her body perfectly.
What is it like getting body painted by a gorgeous lake? Read Kerri’s Lake Tahoe Bodypaint story.
Our Bodies Come from Nature
At the Getty Villa in Los Angeles, Matthew Simmons was another male model to feature in the series. Using the Greek and Roman-inspired architecture found around the villa, Trina’s camouflage body painting simultaneously erases and celebrates the human body. Matthew says, "It's easy to forget sometimes that we come from nature; bodypainting plunges my naked body back into source".
See more of Trina’s bodypaint artwork at the Getty Villa
Bodypainting on a 300lb Body Inspires Newfound Confidence
It’s not just women who were featured in this amazing body positivity movement, Martinus Evans discovered recovery through art. Once camouflaging his body so he wasn’t seen, Martinus stood boldly as he modeled for Trina, feet grounded on the soil as Trina’s painted waterfall cascaded down his body, illuminating his 300lb frame in all its glory. After sharing the images online, Martinus felt a “newfound confidence” as Trina’s work expresses a strong message about celebrating the natural bodies of men as well as women, challenging unrealistic expectations and breaking gender complications.
“The type of art I do forces people to use nature’s lens to look at other humans. Don’t look at this 300 lb person’s man boobs, look at BEAUTY in front of you”
Grounding Experience in Central Park
Within the beautiful fall foliage of New York’s Central Park, model Catherine chose Trina for her ability to promote “positive body awareness” which encouraged her to face her insecurities head on. The chosen spot brings city and nature together with Catherine in between. Either side we see which trees almost encasing her natural body while the towering skyline peaks overhead. The contrasting settings show the opposing sides of our environment, but Catherine says nature was “grounding” and helped her embrace her body in a new light.
Read more about Catherine’s Central Park Bodypaint Adventure
Go Big or Go home in Seattle
In the heart of Seattle, this model describes her body positivity art as a “Go big or go home” moment. You can see the confidence beaming from this model with her head literally in the cloud as her worries disappear and she stands tall and proud. When asked how she felt at the end of her session, she said: “I felt amazing, it was the bravest thing I have ever done and it was so empowering and liberating. I never liked the way I looked (especially nude) until that day!”
Read more about Kaylee’s Bodypaint Story HERE
“This is a stressful time, full of anxiety and fear. We released this video “ Peaceful Nature Bodypaintings for Meditation, Yoga, and Sleep” so while you’re in sheltering in place, stressed out, we thought we could offer this reminder that nature creates balance- it makes medicine to heal our minds, bodies & emotions.”
Conclusion
In a time when social media influences so many parts of our lives including our relationships to our bodies, Trina hopes that her body positivity art will encourage people to celebrate the parts of themselves that have been shielded and discover the natural beauty in themselves.
You can follow Trina’s body-positive artwork on her Instagram page @trinamerryart or check out https://www.trinamerry.com/camouflage for a closer look at her camouflage bodypaint series.
