© Agnieszka RAYSS
Exhibition is taking place
P. Stulga museum of Lithuanian national musical instruments
(L. Zamenhofo str. 12)
II-VI 10.00-18.00
The opening of exhibition: 17:30, May 21, 2009 (Thursday)
Cycle: Male strip-tease or Angels for Women
The changing position of women in society issues that they may do themselves what they want, not just what society allows. They revealed that there are women who ostentatiously desire undressing men. But performance of Polish Chippendales (and perhaps above all) shows our small, counterfeit version of America. This on the one hand forced by the media, on the other - grown from a sincere heart will to import Western models.
The heroes:
The Models of FX consists of seven boys, including student of English language and steward of Polish airlines. We perform in clubs and discos throughout Poland, also during corporate events. March dates in the area of Women’s Day we have already taken six months earlier. There are also maiden evenings – we perform solo there. On Saturday night, each one of us sometimes has six performances in one night – tells Mariusz, the head of the group.
Polish Chippendales avoid the word “strippers”. We are your angels they write on their web site. Their shows are treated as something very neutral, but within the limits of good taste, as opposed to female strip-tease.
The heroines:
Women coming to the Chippendales’ performances are very different - teenage and adult, young girls, married and divorced women, cashiers and heads of companies. It is hard to find any rules. This is such a springboard from everyday life - they say. From their husbands and children, laundry, cooking, cleaning. Or from the boring work, failures. It happens so rarely that someone is doing something just for us.
Agnieszka Rayss (1970) is a freelance photojournalist based in Warsaw, Poland. Received her master degree in the History of Art From the Jagiellonian University in Cracow. Participant in the courses of Polish Federation of Photographers. In 2004 selected for the Leadership Training for emerging photojournalists organized by Altemus foundation and VII Photo agency in France. Recipient of the Visegrad Fund scholarship in 2007, Noorderlicht Photofestival 2008 participant. Co-founder of Sputnik Photos International Association of Photojournalists Collective.
Her interests include post-communists societies in their attempt to follow Western patterns, pop-culture aspects of transformation, female and gender issues and sports. She publishes in leading Polish magazines.
