''101 Vagina'' is a black-and-white

coffee table A coffee table is a low table designed to be placed in a sitting area for convenient support of beverages, remote controls, magazines, books (especially large, illustrated coffee table books), decorative objects, and other small items.R.W. Sym ...

photo-book A photo book or photobook is a book in which photographs make a significant contribution to the overall content. A photo book is related to and also often used as a coffee table book. Early Early photo books are characterized by their use o ...

by Philip Werner, with a foreword by

Toni Childs Toni Childs (born October 29, 1957) is an American-Australian singer-songwriter. She is best known for her songs "Don't Walk Away" (a ''Billboard'' Hot 100 hit in the United States in 1988), "I've Got to Go Now", a Top 5 hit in Australia in 19 ...

. It was

self-published Self-publishing is the publication of media by its author at their own cost, without the involvement of a publisher. The term usually refers to written media, such as books and magazines, either as an ebook or as a physical copy using POD (pri ...

in March 2013 in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metro ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

. The book contains 101 close-up nude photos shot in a non- provocative way, along with an accompanying story or message written by each woman about her

vagina In mammals, the vagina is the elastic, muscular part of the female genital tract. In humans, it extends from the vestibule to the cervix. The outer vaginal opening is normally partly covered by a thin layer of mucosal tissue called the hymen ...

. The book's photos and stories were exhibited five times in Australia in 2013, with a US and Canadian tour in 2014 taking place in six locations.

Publication

''101 Vagina'' was funded by

crowd sourcing Crowdsourcing involves a large group of dispersed participants contributing or producing goods or services—including ideas, votes, micro-tasks, and finances—for payment or as volunteers. Contemporary crowdsourcing often involves digita ...

and took some two years to create. Werner was initially inspired by ''

The Vagina Monologues ''The Vagina Monologues'' is an episodic play written in 1996 by Eve Ensler which developed and premiered at HERE Arts Center, Off-Off-Broadway in New York and was followed by an Off-Broadway run in at Westside Theatre. The play explores c ...

'' and subjects were found via

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social me ...

after Werner publicised his objective to create a book that had both an educational and celebratory goal. The models, ranging in age from 18 to 65, remain anonymous. Singer-songwriter

, who wrote the foreword, made contact with Werner after he initiated a peace march in honour of murdered

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-owne ...

employee Jill Meagher in his

Brunswick, Victoria Brunswick is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Melbourne city centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Merri-bek Local government areas of Victoria, local gov ...

, neighbourhood. Speaking to ''

The Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...

'' about the book, Werner commented that: "I hope it finds its way to a few young women and girls...So they see that hese pictures arenormal rather than pictures in magazines." Stories accompanying the photos discuss various themes, including ageing, pregnancy,

Brazilian waxing Bikini waxing is the removal of pubic hair using a special wax, which can be hot or cold, that adheres to hairs and pulls them out when the wax is removed quickly from the skin, usually with a cloth strip. While the practice is mainly associa ...

, first sexual encounter and poor

body image Body image is a person's thoughts, feelings and perception of the aesthetics or sexual attractiveness of their own body. The concept of body image is used in a number of disciplines, including neuroscience, psychology, medicine, psychiatry, ps ...

Reception

On publication ''101 Vagina'' received broad media coverage, including write-ups in ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

,'' ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' and '' La Presse'' in Montreal. It was also discussed on

ABC Radio National Radio National, known on-air as RN, is an Australia-wide public service broadcasting radio network run by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). From 1947 until 1985, the network was known as ABC Radio 2. History 1937: Predecessors a ...

and

2SER 2SER is a community radio station in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, broadcasting on the frequency 107.3 FM and is a member of the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia. The station is largely self-supporting, relying upon revenue ...

Exhibitions

''101 Vagina'' was presented as an exhibition on several occasions in Australia in 2013. This included being part of The Sydney Fringe and

Melbourne Fringe Festival The Melbourne Fringe Festival is an annual independent arts festival in Melbourne, Australia, usually over three weeks from late September to early October. Held since 1982, the Festival includes a wide variety of art forms, including theatre, com ...

. In 2014, it was officially launched in the US and Canada with a series of exhibitions. The tour included Los Angeles and Laguna Beach.

Controversy and censorship

In Sydney, the exhibition was visited by police responding to a complaint that the images were visible from the street. Images were required to be censored as part of a group exhibition at The Sydney Fringe.

References

{{Reflist, 2

External links