Petra Collins' DISCHARGE: "Intimate" [Semi] Nude Teens

I went to the Capricious gallery in New York's Chinatown to view 21-year-old Petra Collins' Discharge, which was Collins' first solo exhibit.

Per the Village Voice, Collins: "[...] addresses the insecurities and angst of the female teenage experience through her artworks [...] The photographs depict young women in various intimate scenes [...] many of the works deal aggressively with the physical changes of female adolescence."

According to the Capricious' website, Collins has been: "... creating provocative work that deals with female sexuality and teenagehood since the ready age of fifteen."
The gallery relates that Collins is:

• founder and curator of The Ardorous, an online art collective showcasing work by emerging female artists
• a staff photographer at Rookie, Tavi Gevinson’s magazine for teenage girls
• a casting director for Richard Kern [a photographer of nymphets]
• the writer and director of two films “The Crimson Crusade” and “Pussy Power” - two subversive shorts that focus on reclaiming female sexuality, and
• the curator of an all-female art show titled Gynolandscape

In addition to photographing nymphets, Collins:

• began giving lectures on art and female sexuality at educational and art institutions such as York University and The Art Gallery of Ontario
• was profiled by the New York Times as a cultural influencer
• has work that has been featured in publications like VICE, Oyster, Vogue Italia, GARAGE, and Purple
• was named one of Canada’s top 30 artists under 30 by Blouin Artinfo, and
• is currently working on a book of photography to be printed by Random House in 2015

The fact that the above institutions and personalities support and praise Collins' work is a testament to the extensive allure of nymphets. But her photography does blur the line between art and teen (softcore) pornography.

Discharge by Petra Collins