Spanish artist José Abajo Izquierdo specializes in nude art installations, but unlike his more famous counterpart, Spencer Tunick, his events involve movement and paint. His next installation, slated for Madrid June 27 and 28 in the Pradillo theater, will feature 300 nude men and women who will paint each others bodies and dance in front of a live audience and will also be filmed as part of a documentary. The event is being held in conjunction with a gay and lesbian festival and receives municipal funding.

Related Sites:

• Photo of an Izquierdo event

Nudist forums, or discussion groups as they’re also known, have been around for several years and constitute a highly efficient way for nudists to communicate with other like-minded people. There are many forums that relate to nudism, some of which have thousands of members. You usually have to register as a member in order to view posts, and also to submit your own posts. Posts can be read online and in most cases new posts can optionally be emailed to you on a regular basis.
Forums can be a means to share your opinions, meet other nudists, or to announce an event or anything of interest to the naturist community. It’s certainly one of the best sources of free publicity for a nudist business.
Well-organized nudist forums have several categories, thus allowing posts to be focused on specific topics. A good discussion group should also be moderated, lest users’ posts wander into inappropriate, non-nudist topics or devolve into abuse, commonly referred to as “flaming”.
One of the top forums is “Nudist Resorts”, which despite the name, runs the entire gamut of topics related to naturism. Cheri Alexander, she of the Travelites club in South Carolina, moderates the forum. She told us that she can edit or delete posts that violate the forum’s content rules, but if a user needs to be barred from posting again, she must then refer the matter to the forum’s administrator. Alexander, who also oversees user posts on many other naturist forums, confesses that moderating “a LOT of work and dedication. Just moderating the board takes several hours a day.”
Other highly regarded forums are offered by the naturist portal Clothesfree (See link below).

Related Sites:

• Nudist Resorts Forum
• CothesFree forums

Related Stories:

• Article about Travelites

Lately, the media has been saying that nudists are a bunch of old people getting older by the day. We recently reported to our readers that there’s actually a club in Edinburg, Texas, that advertises itself as a nudist club for those 55 and over. Today we bring you an interview with John Bowser, director of operations at Sandpipers Resort, the club in question. His answers may surprise…

Nudist Day: Recently the press has been going on about how nudists are generally old and having trouble attracting the younger set. That being the case, why the necessity to make your club for 55+?
John Bowser: Our resort has been designated to be “intended” for couples 55+ since its inception 20 years ago. The recent change in ownership has not yet had time to review a change in that status. We are finding a resurgence of younger people which may be due to the fact that the baby boomers are retiring earlier. Also, younger people are naturally curious about the nudist lifestyle. Suprisingly, they fit into the nudist atmosphere with a sigh of relief that all seduction games are left with their clothes at the door. We assure their privacy , safety and security while at the resort. Basically, it is like Disneyland for naked people… G rated and just a fun place to go.

Rental unit being constructed at Sandpipers. Photo courtesy of Sandpipers Resort ©
ND: Is the 55+ more of a marketing concept than an actual limitation? Do you turn away anybody younger than 55?
JB: The 55+ concept lends to assuring a like mindedness in activities and physical limitations. Many of our guests participate in running, tennis, volleyball, aerobics, etc… But probably at less strenuous levels than 25 year old athletes. We do permit both singles and younger guests in percentages to maintain the intention of the original charter.

” We are finding a resurgence of younger people which may be due to the fact that the baby boomers are retiring earlier. Also, younger people are naturally curious about the nudist lifestyle…”

ND: Do you find that more mature nudists actually want to be surrounded by their peers?
JB: We frequently have visiting children or grandchildren of guests as well as locals obtaining annual memberships to use the facilities. I have observed nothing but the ultimate display of friendliness that our resort is famous for.

ND: What seniors’ needs does sandpipers satisfy, specifically, over and above regular clubs?
JB: Our current management team has been in place for 5 months. We initially distributed an extensive survey to all guests for input as to levels of service desired, amenities, improvements, etc… The results were then tabulated and prioritized to not only meet but to exceed guest expectations. Staffing includes personnel with medical & law enforcement backgrounds and personal phone number posting grants 24/7 access to guests. Our goal is to raise the service to a concierge level. We have assisted in furniture moving, landscape assistance, and many other services when requested.

ND: Has there been a lot of interest?
JB: We are an international destination for our area maintaining 100% occupancy throughout last season. Phase 3 construction has opened 26 new sites and will include new suites for rentals. Our recent marketing focus has shifted to the local “textile” community with a positive response of amused curiosity. Participating in nude recreation has hit the list of 100 things to try before you die and one of the fastest growing segments of the travel industry.

ND: Are there plans for future enhancements to the club?
JB: On the drawing board are a nature area to attract birds & butterflies, a billiards room, shuffleboard courts, new larger hot tub, volleyball pool, additional suites, exercise room, and much more.

Related Sites:

• Sandpipers Resort

One thing we’ve always done at Nudist Day is bring you stories about nudists and nudism in far flung, unexpected, places. Recently we found-out that there’s an active nudist group called “Naturismo Bogota” in Colombia, based in the capital. We asked Edgar Lopez, organizer of said group, to tell us a bit about naturism in his country.
According to Lopez, social nudism has only existed for 10 years in Colombia. There’s no officially recognized nude beaches and no clubs in his country, and there’s no nudist association, although Lopez hopes to change that soon. He told us that there are several beaches within the boundaries of the Tayrona national park near Santa Marta on the Caribbean sea where everybody knows nudists go, but none of them have any official status.
“Naturismo Bogota” has been in existence since 2004, and uses a Yahoo discussion group to recruit new members and to keep in touch with existing ones which on June 7, 2007 numbered around 585. Men far outnumber women by a ratio of nine to one, perhaps an indication that Colombian women have yet to warm to the idea of social nudism. The media, including RCN television, Telemundo, Soho magazine and the El Tiempo newspaper have interviewed them countless times. Every time a story about them is published or aired, the group’s membership increases significantly, Lopez claims. Lopez stresses, however, that the group does not seek to promote itself actively, in order to avoid fomenting controversy. Many areas of the country are very conservative and would consider public nudity immoral, he goes on to say.

Photo courtesy of Naturismo Bogota. Copyright to same.
Lopez says his group sometimes gets together in members’ homes to practice yoga, but Bogota itself is too cold to practice nudism, the average temperature oscillating between 14 and 20 degrees Celsius all year, thanks to the city’s extreme altitude. Consequently, typical nudist activities such as sunning and swimming in pools takes place in the Melgar area, which is in a valley outside Bogota where temperatures are typically 28 to 30 C. One of the activities Lopez organizes frequently are nude hikes in the mountains east of Bogota (see photo). Whenever they encounter non-nudists along the trails, the groups’ members cover themselves with towels and the exchanges with the non-initiated have generally been cordial.

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - June 16, 2007, is the date set for the next installment in the Tree Spirit Project, which features photographs of nudes and old growth trees. Jack Gescheidt, founder of the endeavor, has also made this a environmental protest, as this is the third time the mature trees in question are part of stands threatened by development. This time, the trees are located at Lake Merritt, near Oakland, 200 of them which are due to be cut down and replaced by saplings. As usual, the media will be present in great numbers, including Gescheidt’s own videographer. Anybody can participate as a model by first registering at the project’s website.

Related Stories:

• Nude Photo Shoot & Protest Set for April 22
• Naked in a Tree for Art and the Environment

Related Links:

• Details on how to participate
• Tree Spirit Project