Tuesday, February 14th
Tiberio and Matt will be at eSe Amor, eSe Teatro’s first annual Valentine’s Day Gala fundraiser. In addition to live art by Tiberio and book signing, the event celebrates Latin American authors with passionate readings from great works inspired by love, romance and sensuality. The event will include professional readings of excerpts from works by Pablo Neruda, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Isabel Allende, Alfonsina Storni, Mario Vargas Llosa, Cervantes, and Laura Esquivel. Guests will be treated to gourmet chocolate and wine tastings, tapas, live music performances and romantic dancing demos.

February 10th through 18th
Two photographs from La Figa will be featured in the “Best of the Northwest” showcase at the Detroit Dirty Show – one of the largest erotic art shows in the world.

February 11th through March 17th
Four photographs from La Figa will be featured in the exhibition You Are What You Eat, at the Strathmore, in Bethesda, Maryland…

“Art about food triggers memories and desires as we connect food with beauty, pleasure, taste, perception, excitement and regret. This multi-media exhibition explores how the food that we eat creates the armature of our physical form and our perceived body image, and how figure representations in art allows the viewer a personal freedom to disregard cultural norms.”

Being an American citizen, I enjoy the freedom of expression enjoyed by artists in this country. However, I wonder sometimes if we grasp some of the ironies of how we express that freedom.

I am from Italy, which is known as one of the most romantic countries in Europe, a destination for lovers who come to visit from all over the world. So, perhaps I have a slightly different perspective on how Americans express themselves, particularly with regard to romance and sensuality. In Italy, we embrace these concepts in everything we do – the way we dress, the way we cook, the way we dine, and the way we live.

In America however, I sometimes sense a split personality with regard to these concepts. More specifically, I think we sometimes confuse our sensuality with sexuality, and as a result, try to keep both of them hidden for fear of corrupting our children. My point is, there is a difference.

For instance, if any part of the human body that would traditionally be covered by a bathing suit on a typical American beach is shown in a film, that film is rated for adult content, usually getting an “R.” If it is shown in a TV show, the scene is either deleted, or the “naughty bits,” as the British call them, are digitally pixilated out. And of course those areas are not necessarily even covered by bathing suits in Europe, as many of the beaches there are clothing optional.

In this type of censorship, there is no accounting for context. It’s not about the type of scene, but rather the anatomy. If it is a romantic scene, with a context of love and respect, soft lighting, and appropriate mood, it is considered just as “dirty” as a scene in which naked women are running around and shown as sexual objects and nothing more.

The same goes for modern art. Gallery shows in which the human form is depicted tastefully and sensually are regarded as pornography by many “morals” groups, leading some Congressmen to suggest that public funding from the National Endowment for the Arts should not be awarded to any artist who deals with the nude form. The chilling effect, when we approach the sensual and the sexual in the same way, is that we teach our children that nudity itself is a dirty thing, and that they should all be ashamed of their bodies.

That is why young adults in America go directly from puberty straight to pornography – because they do not have anything in between, such as public art or other forms of healthy nudity – things that wold help them develop an understanding of sensuality.

Here is the ultimate irony. While we demonize certain parts of the human form, we don’t demonize treating women as sex objects at all, because we use sex to sell just about everything in the consumer marketplace. In TV commercials, young, attractive, and barely dressed women sell everything from cars to beer, weight loss plans to gym gear, breakfast cereals to vacation destinations – even snack foods practically guaranteed to make the men who eat them incredibly unattractive to the women used to sell them.

The difference here is context. We enter the world naked. It is our most natural state as humans, yet the naked body is considered dirty and inappropriate for all time zones. Meanwhile, treating women not as people, but simply as objects of sexual desire, which demeans all women in the process, is perfectly acceptable.

We need to create an environment in America in which sensuality is not confused with sexuality, so that we can all enjoy a freedom of expression that is based in context and meaning instead of an unhealthy and negative obsession with sex.

This album features a selection of bonus images of Reyshard, taken at our La Figa photo shoot in late 2010. The complete album can be found on our Facebook page, but here are a few highlights…

Our signature coffee image

Matt did some publicity shots for Reyshard before the La Figa shoot.

Another publicity shot.

It was tough, but we ended up not including any of the smiling images in the book.

Another one we wish we could have included in the book.

One of the "Making Of" images.

The last shot of the day.

We would also like to thank the wonderful models for sharing their bodies as canvas for the pleasure of your eyes, and more than anything I would like to mother nature for providing such gifts to feed and decorate the body with the service of La Figa Catering.

We will be doing more sensual parties like this in the near future — to be sure not to miss them, join our mailing list (at the bottom of this page).

We really appreciate all of you who bought the book, and are supporting our mission to continue creating more art for people’s eyes, as a tool to educate America about its biggest taboo — nudity. To introduce young and old to the beauty of people’s shapes by using art and not pornography, and promoting food and touch as the basic ingredients of life. We ask you to please help us spread the word, to friends, family, and social media.

Remember two things: eat well, and make love.

Con Affetto, Pleasure Activist Tiberio Simone,

P.S. if you were wondering what any of the dishes were on Friday, this is the menu of what I prepared:
Port wine and capers Italian meat roll
Mushroom and potato strudel
Salumi, provolone, and anchovy olive sandwiches
Stuffed Mushrooms with gorgonzola and drunken figs puré
Olive, mozzarella, and tomato skewers
Spicy fried tofu with chive blossom
Bristol Bay house smoked salmon belly
Grilled sweet pepper
Minted peas mousse love
Candied orange peel
Espresso chocolate hearts with Turkish lemon salt
Pistachio butter tortoni
Peanut, honey, and lime diamond tart
Chocolate toffee mousse cup

Battuto means battle and this Italian dressing and marinade has that name because the ingredients battle each other to create a flavor that is incredible.

Grilled Eggplant

2 to 3 medium firm eggplant
1/4     cup olive oil
sea salt

Battuto Dressing

1 cup       extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup   balsamic vinegar or 1/8 cup red wine vinegar
1 tsp        red chili flakes
2 tsp        fine sea salt
4 leaves   fresh mint (chopped)
1/4 cup    chopped Italian parsley
2 tsp         finely chopped fresh garlic

Mix the ingredients and leave them at room temperature for up 3 to 4 days or in the refrigerator for a week.

Note:  This dressing is delicious to use on any meat, seafood or vegetables before or after grilling

Instructions

1. Slice the eggplant crosswise into 3/4 inch pieces.

2. Brush both sides generously with olive oil.

3. Place slices on very hot grill and cook until the eggplant has black grill marks and golden brown flesh (about 3-4 minutes). Turn and grill the other side to the same doneness (about 2 to 3 minutes).  Before removing from the grill, sprinkle sea salt on the slices.

4. Place the slices side by side, not stacked, on a baking sheet. Once cooled, layer the slices in a beautiful serving dish and top them with the well-mixed Battuto dressing.  You need approximately one tablespoon of dressing for every two or three slices.  You can stack the eggplant to create additional layers in your dish.

I suggest letting the eggplant sit at least 3 hour before serving. The dish lasts up to 5 days in the refrigerator and tastes better with each passing day.

Eggplant All Battuto can be served as a side dish for pretty much everything or try making one of my favorite sandwiches with the eggplant slices layered with fresh mozzarella or provolone cheese on a baguette. YMMMM!

Matt’s photos from the event are are now posted on our Facebook page. Here are a few highlights…

La Figa Café

Creating Art

A completed piece

Full house in the café

Tiberio decorated one of the performers for the mainstage show as well.

Another creation

Yes, it was edible art

Matt's favorite photo from the weekend

And some behind-the-scenes photos of our behind-the-scenes video…

Dan filming.

Dan discussing the shot with Tiberio and our model.

Tiberio arranging mushrooms.

Contemplating.

Candid moment.

Matt, on the other side of the lens for a change.

One of our final "keeper" images for the book.

Mushrooms!