Oscar Wilde wrote in his 1889 essay The Decay of Lying that “Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life”. I find this to be true, don’t you?
This quote spoke to me as I was going through my photo archives and came across some similarities. Back in the day, Mistress J had thoughts of studying art history and becoming a museum curator. However, her passion for the camera was stronger for her passion for art history, and, shall we say, the rest is history? But I digress, I know you want to look at my photos!
Grande Odalisque by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres.
I always had a thing for neoclassic paintings depicting women in Turkish baths surrounded by servants. Looking back, I think the appeal was the masked eroticism. I remember seeing this painting in an art history class and it stood out in my memory. This painting, Grand Odalisque by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres is mysterious and erotic, tempting yet subtle. The woman, a slave seems in control of herself, yet historically speaking, had a very low social standing. I love the colors, the muted beauty, and her lovely white skin.
Now look at this photo I took of the lovely Theresa Because (http://www.becausewhyart.com). 
During the session she relaxed on the chaise and turned her back to me. Something in her pose spoke to me and I handed her the fan and I did several shots evoking this painting. Is it an exact replica? No. But you can see the inspiration can you not? Maybe we can call this one the Kinky Concubine. Back in the day, an odalık rose to a concubine if she slept with the sultan. The talented Shots did the rope work.
I love creating mysterious, sensual, thought provoking images. I have been known to hide my subject’s face, or have them point off screen. I am influenced by romance, impressionism, and of course pain and desire.
I created this photo during a recent session. As the session unfolded, my client placed himself on the chaise and turned his back to me. I must find the rear ends of people to be very inspiring, because something about his 
backside spoke to me.
This image is different than the other two because this one shows his vulnerability. We don’t often see the softer side of a man, but in a photo session, I often do, and like it. The other pictures showed the women accepting calm about their sexuality, or what might happen next. This one shows emotion. Is he afraid, hurt or just tired? Hard to say. But the Ingres influence is pretty strong. It will be interesting to see how often this painting influences my other sessions.
I love to make sexual, sensual photos of the human form and would love to work with you in unleashing your inner odalisque whether you are a man or a woman.
Intrigued? Contact me. My email is Mistressjstudios@gmail.com. I am in San Jose, California.