Gay Art Student Plans To Lose His Virginity In Front Of Audience In The Name Of 'Art'
A gay art student has sparked outrage over plans to lose his virginity in front of a crowd of 100 people - in the name of art.
By Sadho Ram — 28 Oct 2013, 11:22 PM — Updated almost 11 years ago
Clayton Pettet, a 19-year-old student at Central Saint Martins art school in London, will have sex for the first time in a gallery full of eagle-eyed art lovers
Clayton Pettet said he will have gay sex for the first time in a gallery for a project entitled 'Art School Stole My Virginity'. He said his 'performance art project' - followed by a question and answer session - will challenge the idea of sexuality.
dailymail.co.ukHe is planning for his first full sexual encounter is set to take place before an audience of between 50 and 100 in a space in Hackney, London. Clayton and his partner will have protected sex and then ask the audience what they thought of the performance.
No word on what Pettet's parents thinks of their son's plans — it's rumored they don't even know about it yet.
Image via nydailynews.comClayton, who has been planning the event for three years, said: 'The key thing about performance art is that it should only be performed once, and this is the ultimate once-in-a-lifetime performance.
His aim is to explore the ideal of virginity
"I've held on to my virginity for 19 years, and I'm not throwing it away lightly. Basically it's like I am losing the stigma around virginity," he said, per the Daily Star.
"I want the audience to see if anything has changed between me and my partner. Since culturally we do hold quite a lot of value to the idea of virginity I have decided to use mine and the loss of it to create a piece that I think will stimulate interesting debate and questions regarding the subject."
dailymail.co.ukUnsurprisingly, Pettet’s project has raised a few eyebrows. Some have even accused the Central Saint Martins art school in London student of “cheapening” sex.
“I’m not quite sure how that’s art. My view is that we believe that all sexuality is a gift from God,” said Rev. Sharon Ferguson, a spokeswoman for the Lesbian and Gay Christian Movement.
“It’s about what you do with it and how we use it is an expression of our love for God. For my imagining in sex as an art form, I don’t think this falls into that category.”
thefrisky.com
“My issue is around is this the right expression of someone’s bodily sexuality? As an art project in front of an audience, where is the love, respect and mutuality in that?” she said. “Stunts like this cheapens our own sexual relationships.”
In response, Pettet took to his Tumblr to promote his idea:
The Idea of “Art School Stole My Virginity” came around when I was Sixteen, when all my peers at school were losing their Virginity it was incredibly hard for me to ask why I was still a Virgin and why it meant so much to the people all around me.
nydailynews.com
Clayton Pettet said his 'performance art project' - followed by a question and answer session - will challenge the idea of sexuality.
Image via dailymail.co.ukMy piece isnt [sic] a statement as much as it is a question. The whole aspect of Virginity was incredibly emotional for me and has been ever since. ... I want my piece to inject some speed into the arts, a performance of the people if you will.
I feel like now is the time for the new scene. To lose my Virginity with the new age is the Avant Garde that London has been unintentionally waiting for.
ibtimes.com