When pressed to think of sultry, sexy ladies, “bike messenger” does not always come quickly to mind. Alexis Finch hopes to change that perception. She’s the ball of energy behind the Thought You Knew (TyK) Pin-Up calendar, a first-time project with 100 percent of its proceeds going to the Chicago Women’s Health Center. Finch called on her cycling sisters to fill the pages of the group’s 13-month calendar, set to be unveiled at the Chicago Bike Winter Art Show Friday 13. The project, carried out by photographer Michelle Nolan (whose photos have been seen in TOC), hopes to break down the preconceptions about die-hard cyclists. We chatted with Nolan about the process of having these women “get in touch with and celebrate their femininity.”
Time Out Chicago: How did you get involved?
Michelle Nolan: When Alexis asked me, I thought it was a really interesting project. And I’ll be honest, at first I wasn’t quite sure I’d have the time to put into that type of project. But as I was going along, the experience itself was so positive that I just wanted to do the entire thing. We decided to do the reality shots, which were to show the everyday woman on her bicycle and what her whole lifestyle was about from day to day, and then show her in a glamorous pose and the glamorous look you don’t see anymore, the 1950s style.
TOC: Who inspired your work?
Michelle Nolan: Alberto Vargas, one of the classic pinup artists, is who I researched. I know there are a lot of newer pinup artists out there, but I decided to go the more classic route. We didn’t want it to be trampy; we didn’t want it to be a modern-day tease.
TOC:Was there a fantasy element involved with the women selected?
Michelle Nolan: Some of the women are shy, some of them are outgoing. But I think all of them have this little tomboyishness. You know they’re a little rough; they’re very tough girls. The transformation of shooting them in the reality sense to bringing them out in a more sensual, feminine sense did require them to get into that head space of fantasy and how do I not only see myself as a woman, but how do I portray myself as a woman.
TOC:Would you be offended if someone saw this as a sexist project?
Michelle Nolan: I would say that it was more of an exploration of women and the interaction. Photography for me is not necessarily about the technical. It’s also about the experience of what happens with the individual you’re shooting, while you’re shooting them. Not that a male photographer couldn’t shoot this; of course they could. But that dynamic between a woman looking at another woman and saying “that looks beautiful. That’s a great pose. You look gorgeous,” and reacting to that. There’s another woman in the room here who finds me beautiful. And it’s not necessarily in a sexual way but more of a true feminine way.
TOC:Who do you think the project will appeal to?
Michelle Nolan: From the sexual standpoint, I think it would appeal to a lot of men, a lot of straight men in their twenties, thirties who find women attractive. These women are beautiful. That side of it is obviously there just with the style of pinup. But then I think a lot of younger women would be attracted to it as well. I think you can tell when someone is shot, when you see the before and after, there is a sense of empowerment, and I think young women today need that.
TOC:What’s the purpose of pairing a “reality shot” with the pinup photo?
Michelle Nolan: As a photographer, I think we show too much of the postproduced image. I think that we don’t see enough of the real person. The pinup is supposed to be more fantasy; it is supposed to be art in itself of showing that moment of sensuality. But then you forget that this is really a person. This is an individual who we see everyday who I probably wouldn’t recognize her from the calendar if I didn’t see the reality shot. They are beautiful women, but they don’t look like that every day.
TOC:Did you learn any lessons?
Michelle Nolan: Being outside of that community I would see girls biking around, and I would have this idea of what that person’s like. But I was totally wrong. When I started shooting all of these women, I had this idea that they were a little more rough and they weren’t like girls I would hang out with. And then I started going along, I was like, God, these girls are awesome. They have awesome personalities; they’re all totally different. They’re exactly like anyone you would meet.—Tim McCormick
Nab your copy of the TyK calendar at local bike retailers and the Bike Winter Art Show on Friday 13.
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