This week I am, for lack of a better term, very excited to share my interview with Mareena and her up and coming online/ print zine From Women With Love
I’ve been following Mareena on Instagram for a while, and let me tell you she does it all and then some. Mareena is the owner of an online vintage clothing shop called Aqua Vintage (linked down below!). She also uses Instagram as a platform to promote positivity and get people talking about taboo topics.
Her newest endeavor From Women With Love is a refreshing change from a long line of men portraying the female body through their own eyes. Luckily I got the opportunity to talk to Mareena about her vision for the zine, which just so happened to fit perfectly into Our Bodies Our Art.
What made you start From Women With Love?
The concept for this project has been brewing in the back of my mind for years. Porn is an inescapable aspect of our modern culture. It seeps into advertising, it lives in magazines behind counters at gas stations, it’s a click away any time you’re online. And yet women are rarely found in the industry outside of being models and porn stars, lacking a voice in the way they’re portrayed.
My desire for a sex-positive publication that finds its voice entirely in women was fully recognized when I discovered A Bunny’s Tale, Gloria Steinem’s story of her time as a Playboy Bunny that displayed the unfair treatment and dishonest wages plaguing the club. It made me think of how important it is to do my part and create a space for women to not only feel sexy but share anything from art to advice and control every aspect of how they’re portrayed.
If you could describe the zine’s mission in a few words, what would it be and why?
Crush misconceptions and create opportunity. More than anything I want to break down the unrealistic images and narrow roles porn often promotes for women, as well as generally advocate equality in any way possible.
Who do you hope reads From Women With Love?
Absolutely everyone. I think this can be greatly enjoyable and beneficial to anyone with an interest in artistic endeavors and sex.
When do you feel the most empowered?
I feel most empowered when I’m creating. Whether it’s writing, photography, or putting together a magazine, being able to freely and creatively translate my ideas and feelings into the real world is not just cathartic but joyful and liberating.
And to end it off, what is you favorite quote/ motto/ affirmation to live by?
“Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion.” – Jack Kerouac
Check out From Women with Love on Instagram
Check out Mareena’s shop Aqua Vintage
*all images taken by Mareena*
Want to participate in Our Bodies Our Art, and be interviewed for the blog? Go to Instagram and use the hashtag #ourbodiesourart on your body positive photographs, selfies, or any kind of art you can think of!
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