At Residence 11, we are interested in all forms of art and artistic expression, from music to painting and beyond. Today we bring you an interview with Alabama-based erotic artist Risqué Alter Ego, a charcoal pencil and pastel enthusiast. She says she “loves erotic art that expresses ideas that are typically taboo in our society and frowned upon” and uses her drawings and creativity as an outlet for her personal feelings, beliefs, and experiences. Her work has been exhibited at The Detroit Dirty Show and The Seattle Erotic Art Festival.
We encourage you to check out her portfolio of erotic art as well as her prints for sale, and keep reading to find out about her artistic process and the inspiration for her art.
How long have you been creating art, and why did you decide to focus on charcoal pencil? What does that medium allow you to do that others don’t?
My Bachelor’s degree is actually in art. I focused on drawing with charcoal pencils for the majority of those years. However, it wasn’t until 2020 that I really started to focus on using charcoal pencils to express myself through erotic art. I chose to use charcoal pencil because I really enjoy the process of layering charcoal, blending, erasing, over and over again. It’s relaxing. I actually fell in love with film photography before charcoal pencils but after college I never had access to a darkroom.
How has your artistic process changed since you started?
Over these past two years, I’ve become a lot more confident in my artistic decisions. I’m not afraid to make a mistake. I draw more relaxed now because I’ve learned my pieces usually come out better than I envisioned them to begin with.
You specialize in erotic art. What drew you to erotic art and what continues to make it interesting for you?
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become more self-aware of who I really am; my beliefs, my wants, my needs, my reality. With that growth, I’ve come to realize the double standards in the world of sex. Women enjoy sex just as much as men, and often times, if we’re open about our sexual life or enjoyment of sex, we get labeled with gendered/sexual slurs. My artwork is created with more of an intent to support self-love (I do a lot of self-portraiture), sexual positivity and body positivity. I am completely comfortable in my skin, body, and who I am as a person. I suppress nothing and I only hope to inspire people to live as their true selves.
You say on your website that each of your pieces has a secret back story. Can you elaborate on that? How do you get the inspiration for your erotic artwork?
My artwork is obviously deeper than what is seen at surface level. My artwork is literally similar to a journal. I don’t draw anything I don’t feel which is why I realized quickly I don’t like commissions. All my pieces have a back story to them, I can tell you exactly what happened to make me draw any particular piece. I haven’t told anyone any of the stories behind them. I feel that once I do, it takes away from the art because each viewer is going to see a different story. All viewers get are a title and a picture, giving them the freedom to create their own narrative! My feelings are my muse and my muse is my inspiration.
Can you walk us through the process of creating one of your erotic art pieces? How long does each one generally take you?
Generally, each piece takes me anywhere from 24-48 total hours. That’s a rough estimate, I haven’t tracked my hours recently but I want to. It just depends on the amount and complexities of the details. So, I have a constantly growing list of drawing ideas in my Notes app. I begin to work on the one I’m feeling in the present moment. I begin by gridding my paper and any photographs I’m working from. I work from both photographs and my mind/imagination/memory; I don’t use models. I have to have the perfect “vibe” while I’m working.
My favorite time to work is in the mornings up until the sun goes down; I don’t really like working under artificial light. I also always have my headphones on and music playing. For most pieces, I start by using a medium charcoal pencil for the outlines, then I start putting layers of charcoal down on the bigger areas that I have to fill using a soft and/or extra soft charcoal pencil. I then add layers of charcoal pencil and blending using a medium charcoal pencil. Once I’m satisfied with the blending, I go in with different types of eraser for the different highlights of that area. Then I go in with the hard charcoal pencil for the dark shadows.
Once the human figure(s) are drawn and the charcoal is put down, I use white charcoal and hard charcoal pencil to add in the small details. The details and the background are always my favorite steps. After the details are added on the human figure(s) I begin the background using colored pastels and/or Prismacolors. Once it’s “complete,” I take at least a day where I don’t look at it or think about it, then I go back and look at it again. At this point, I “clean it up” and make any changes I feel the need to. Sign it. Spray it with fixative. Photograph it. Add it to my portfolio.
Which pieces or types of pieces have been most popular and why do you think that is?
Feenin’ for ALL of You (More than Just Your Physical) has probably been the most popular. I think the details, the colors, the composition of it all just draw the viewer in. He Call Me Daddy is more popular than I thought it would be. A lot of people enjoyed the background on that one. I thought people would shy away from that one because of the title but there’s plenty of men who like women to take control and take the lead.
Who’s an artist whose erotic art you admire, and why?
I’ve really only explored contemporary erotic artists but I admire all the women who are creating erotic art in this society.
What are your plans for the future of your art?
I plan to experiment with larger sizes and different mediums. I’ve always enjoyed mixed media art, so I’d like to push that in my pieces at some point. Eventually, I’d like to have a solo show that tells a story.
Anything else to add?
Something many people get confused about with erotic art is that it is pornography and that’s not the case. I personally don’t create my artwork with the intention to arouse anyone. I can only hope people view erotic art with an open mind and can appreciate it as a piece of art that tells or creates a story in the viewer’s mind.
