[BRA BURNING] What’s The Big Deal About Petra Collins’ Bloody Vag Tee?

If you haven’t heard, some people are repulsed by artist Petra Collins’ Period Power Tee featuring a menstruating vag with a warm welcome mat of pubic hair. Also, if you haven’t heard, some people are repulsed by vaginas, pubic hair, women, the female body, menstruation, masturbation, tampons, talking about tampons, buying their girlfriend tampons, unwaxed vaginas, and just the general reality of women who haven’t been sterilized into something palatable and plastic for male consumption. Okay, that’s unfair. That whole “male consumption” line would indicate that it’s just men getting all worked up out about this Petra Collins tee, when, in fact, it’s probably equally as troublesome for squeamish women who’d prefer not to see representations of their own natural state howling out there in the wild like that, because OMG women bleed, don’t tell anybody!

For those of you unfamiliar with Petra’s fearlessly female work, she’s a regular contributor to many of our favorite publications including Rookie, Vice, and Oyster. She is also founder and curator of rad all-female art collective, The Ardorous. In stalking Petra’s Instagram account, I noticed some very telling comments posted beneath a photo of the censored tee, in particular, one from a female claiming to believe in women’s rights, but who remarked that she “Doesn’t see a correlation between a bloody vag and those issues,” and that she feels “Disturbed by the image.” So, commenter whose name I withhold to protect your civil right to self-loathing, I would argue that the correlation is as follows: If you are a healthy woman, you probably bleed every month or so (unless your cycle is irregular like mine, in which case you are still womanly and completely normal). If this is part of your reality, and it’s a sign of a happy, functioning body, why should you be ashamed of it? You are probably ashamed of it because society has trained you to believe that your body is something to hide and tame and censor and wash and enhance and inject and douche and clean up because you are inherently not pristine yet simultaneously sexual enough, and because the economy benefits from your self-hate. It’s just like those infuriating tampon commercials that present the illusion of periods being a week long Palm Springs white party complete with white clouds and white pants and white unicorns and white russians, when in reality we all know it’s about carbs and rage and chocolate and staying inside with the shades drawn, complaining about bloat over ichat.

In an interview with Vice about the scarlet vagina controversy, Petra expressed her lack of surprise surrounding all the hubbub. She noted, “We’re so shocked and appalled at something that’s such a natural state—and it’s funny that out of all the images everywhere, all of the sexually violent images, or disgustingly derogatory images, this is something that’s so, so shocking apparently.” She continues, with a wisdom beyond her 20 years, “Grown women are taught to repress their post-pubescent body or hide it. When you start puberty and you start growing hair you’re taught to shave it, because no one’s supposed to see it. With your period, it’s something that you conceal—no one’s supposed to know. It’s almost pedophilic—and I don’t want to throw that word around. But this feminine ideology we have, of the woman being a prepubescent girl, is how we’re taught to change our bodies.”

Bottom line is that this shirt isn’t for everyone, although in my perfect world it would be (also in this world would be fat free pizza and self-cleaning Vitamixes). Sporting a bloody vagina graphic on your chest may not be your cup of tea, and so we can agree to disagree about what to wear to tonight’s party (JK I don’t have any plans tonight). But to answer the question posed by The Huffington Post (where photos of the garment are labeled “NSFW-ish”) of “Who exactly will be wearing this shirt?” We will. One in every size, please. It will be the perfect addition to my growing collection of gender-questioning, square-offending, body-affirming tees.

Before I go, I should also note that I’ve deliberately chosen not to address the part about this being an American Apparel product. As a former employee of AA, I am always a bit skeptical of Dov’s motives and the company’s moral code regarding women. Either way, regardless of my relationship to AA and their internal politics, I still back this tee from a feminist and aesthetic perspective.

For more of Petra’s female-centric art and poignant coming-of-age photography (because yes we still feel like we’re awkward teens, and no it doesn’t get easier), visit The Ardorous and Petracollins.com, or follow her on twitter .