Photo: Alexandre Zveiger/Shutterstock

11 Ways People Are Getting Naked in the US

United States Lifestyle Entertainment
by Amanda Machado Aug 15, 2015

1. Laughing with naked comedians in Boston

Andy Ofiesh founded the Naked Comedy Showcase at the Improv Boston over ten years ago. They now host a showcase every first Thursday of the month, and have expanded to New York. In an interview with the New York Post, Ofiesh said doing stand-up naked “gives you a kind of vulnerability that puts the audience on your side straight away.” The event also encourages audience members to join the naked fun by baring all themselves. Event notices remind the audience that no photography or filming is allowed during the show, and that no lewd or sexual acts are tolerated.

2. Practicing yoga naked in New York

New York has plenty of studios offering yoga classes in the nude: Bold and Naked, Nude York Yoga, and Zensual Yoga to name a few. Classes can be single-gender or unisex and run between $20-30 a class. Zensual Yoga also hosts several other nudist events, including nude meditation sessions,“Zensual Kitchen classes”, outdoor trips to nude beaches and resorts, and even a clothing-optional Drum and Dance Circles, complete with an indoor fire pit.

3. Relaxing naked at Harbin Hot Springs near Napa

Just north of Napa Valley, the resort offers soaking pools of spring water that visitors can experience nude. The resort has over 5,000 acres of privacy- and the location has been noted to have some of the cleanest air in the world. Guests visit not only to experience the amenities and natural setting, but also to partake in the many classes and specialized workshops the resort offers each week. Some examples: “Ecstatic Touch,” “Body as Living Presence,” “Compassionate Communication,” and “Love and Ecstasy Training,” which provides “an in-depth course in embodying the skills of tantric lovemaking.”

4. Attending the Seattle Erotic Art Festival

Hosted by the Center for Sex-Positive Culture and its sister nonprofit the Foundation for Sex Positive Culture, the festival exhibits their best picks of erotic art – paintings, photography, sculptures, poetry, installations, films — from around the world. In addition, the event hosts poetry readings, acrobatic displays, erotic installations, “libidinous” films, and lectures. In the evening, attendees celebrate at the Late Night Festival with DJ’s and performances. Attendees dress up anywhere from black-tie to dance club attire to kink/fetish costumes to practically nude (although Washington Law does technically outlaw complete bare genitalia).

5. Or, attending any of the many other sex-positive events around Seattle

Outside of the festival, the Foundation hosts a wide range of sexy events throughout the year: a Halloween Party, erotic massage workshops, nude drawing classes, support groups for various aspects of sexuality, and more. They’ve also created the Pacific Northwest Library for Sex Positive Culture with over 10,000 pieces collected so far.

The Center and Foundation for Sex Positive Culture both work as registered 501(c)(3) nonprofits, since their goals are not financial, but instead to encourage sex-positive culture at large through their various programs. On their website, they state “As proponents of sex positive culture, we believe that the appropriate uses of sex extend beyond reproduction. They include creating personal pleasure, bonding interpersonal relationships, promoting spiritual growth and enhancing emotional and physical health.”

6. Surfing naked at Black’s Beach near San Diego

Located between La Jolla and Torrey Pines State Beach, this nudist beach is known for attracting nude surfers. The beach is also known for its privacy and seclusion, since cliffs surround it and visitors can only access the beach by hiking down a steep path.

7. Dining naked at one of Manhattan’s Clothing Optional Dinners

Each month certain restaurants and locations around Manhattan devote their evening to hosting a nude dinner. Each event usually includes around 50 diners and past venues have included the Mercantile Grill on Pearl Street and Pete’s Downtown in Brooklyn. Staff remain clothed (because of health regulations) and all customers bring towels or scarves to sit on during the meal. John Ordover, the founder of Clothing Optional dinners assured diners that the nudity is there to enhance the dining experience, not make it sexual. In his interview with NPR, he said “What’s sexual is inappropriate nudity or risque nudity. You get no sense of inappropriateness for being dressed the same way as everybody else in the place.”

8. Using their tax dollars to get naked at the government run clothing-optional beach near Miami

Consistently named one of the best nude beaches in the world, Haulover Beach is one of the only government-run nudist beaches in the States. Because of government support, the beach has lifeguards, public restrooms, changing rooms, and concessions, along with clean white sandy shores. The beach welcomes up to 7,000 visitors each day.

9. Booking a naked getaway with “KinkBNB”

Having just launched May 1st, KinkBNB is like the Airbnb for the sexually adventurous traveler. Members list their homes to swap with travelers around the world, only this time, the spaces often specifically cater to “adult play rooms” or “accommodations with the open-minded”. Some example postings: “Love in the Lascivious Lair” in San Francisco, or “Prison Cell” in Leipzig, Germany. The spaces don’t have to be “playspaces” to be listed. The site only requires that “you have a sex positive attitude towards your guests”.

10. Experiencing 30 minutes naked with a stranger in the traveling Hook-Up Truck

The Hook-Up Truck started as an art project looking at the transition of strangers to lovers. Now, artist Spy Emerson has begun touring the States in her truck, hoping to visit festivals and “sex-positive events” around the country (her ultimate plan is to create a similar truck for Europe). Visitors pay $74 for 30 minutes at festivals, or party organizers can rent the truck for five hours for $2,500. As part of the art project, Emerson also asks willing couples to have their picture taken for a photo series she hopes to create documenting the experience.

11. Volunteering to pose naked for the Nu Project

Started in 2005, the Nu Project’s mission is to “document the many sizes, shapes and beauty of adult women.” Their website contains an online gallery of ordinary women (not professional models) from around the world, posing naturally with minimal makeup. Over 150 women have participated so far. Matt Blum and Katy Kessler, the directors of the project, pick their next shooting locations based on how many volunteer models/hosts show interest. In the summer of 2015, they hope to make it to Italy, Greece and Eastern Europe. 

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