STORY OF O

Story of O is an erotic novel that was published in 1954 under the pseudonym Pauline Réage. With its graphic descriptions of sexual exploration, the text has been praised by many feminists as a celebration of women’s empowerment. Appearing at a time when a woman writing about sex was nearly inconceivable, the novel was assumed by many to be the work of a man. In 1994, however, a French journalist under another pseudonym Dominique Aury (born Anne Desclos) came forward as the author.

Natalie Frank, in a suite of gouache and chalk pastel drawings, reclaims the story for feminists and gives image to the psychosexual narratives of the book’s key scenes. In masterfully carnal compositions, she depicts O, the female protagonist, consensually engaging in scenarios of physical submission and sexual freedom. This series deepens Frank’s exploration into desire, laying bare the power structures and practices surrounding the complicated sexuality of female bodies.

These drawings were shown at Half Gallery, New York, in 2018 against wallpaper designed by Marian Bantjes, with drawings by Frank. Frank's book Story of O was published by Lucia Marquand (2018) and juxtaposes her drawings with text from the novel, as well as an interview conducted by cultural critic Lawrence Weschler.

15 gouache and chalk pastel drawings, 30 x 22”, 2019

With wallpaper for the exhibition at Half Gallery, NY, designed by Natalie Frank and Marian Bantjes, produced by Flavorpaper

Book: O, Conversation with Lawrence Weschler. Lucia Marquand, 2019