I was going to wait a while longer to make this announcement, but given this weekend’s Bikinigate scandal when a photo of me in a bikini was deleted from Instagram a total of 19 times for violating their community standards against nudity, I figure announcing now is apropos.
I’m working on opening a museum in San Diego focusing specifically on themes of sexuality and censorship. I told you it’s apropos.
Back story: I’m a nerd. I began collecting antique vibrators years ago, which I used to have displayed in a tiny little glass case in the back of my sex toy store. When I closed up shop, they sat in a box, never seeing the light of day unless I gave a college workshop on the history of the vibrator. They currently are on display in my home office, but very few people will ever see them there. Very sad.
I decided the antique vibrators, as well as a host of other human sexuality artifacts I’ve collected (including an original newspaper clipping of Margaret Sanger’s 1916 arrest for distributing birth control, condoms from the 1920s, a Victorian anti-masturbation device, vintage nude photos, and so much more), belong in a museum. I want them showcased for the public, not just to “ooh” and “ahh” (or point and snicker, as it may be), but to be studied and examined, to foster curiosity and critical thinking about who we are as a sexual culture.
Plus, this would be a far better “must see” attraction for tourists than SeaWorld. Amirite?
For years I’ve wanted to do this, but recently when I was on vacation in Utah and saw a small little boutique museum, it reignited my desire, and I’ve spent 15 hours a day since researching every little facet of starting a museum from curating exhibits to getting funding to purchasing and arranging display cases. I’ve visited a few museums. I’ve reached out to like-minded museum owners for mentorship. I still have a lot more researching to do, and still more unanswered questions, which is why I was going to wait to announce, but alas here we are.
Now before you get too excited, know that as much as I would LOVE to make this dream a reality, I’m not 100% married to the idea if I can’t get all the ducks in a row, and ensure that I can avoid the mistakes and pitfalls I experienced the last time I operated a physical location in PA.
1. I need community support. Although it would be super sadly ironic if the city wouldn’t allow me to open, and censored a museum on censorship, if they do, I won’t fight it. Learning my lessons from my Hell in Pennsylvania, I’m going to check local ordinances, meet with the Main Street Association, and form a planning committee with neighbors BEFORE I open. If there’s a ton of push-back, I’m not opening.
2. I need financial support. When I opened my store in PA, I barely had $10 to my name, I was desperate, and depending on the business as my sole source of income. It never got to spread its wings because I always had to skim profits to pay the shop rent, and my own salary, that I never got to invest enough into it. This time, I’m going to raise all the money I need to start it up BEFORE I open. Again I need to complete my research to determine exact figures, but I estimate I’ll need about $100,000 on top of what I’ve already invested, and will invest, myself. If I can’t raise that sum through a combination of crowd sourcing and major donors, I’m not opening.
I want to do this right- be patient, don’t force it, and let it happen organically. If there’s enough interest for a museum in San Diego about sexuality and censorship, the support and money will find its way to the project. If they don’t, I suspect that I won’t then be able to have enough interest and museum ticket sales to sustain it, and twas not meant to be. Better to know this now than after I sign a 3 year commercial lease at the tune of $3,500 a month.
Obviously I’ll be writing more about my endeavor as it unfolds, but here’s a small sample (can’t give it all away yet), of my plan.
I started brainstorming a list of sexuality topics that lend themselves to museum exhibits; topics that have associated artifacts that I already have or have the capacity to collect, that tell a compelling story, or offer interesting insight into the human condition. Some include:
History of vibrators History of condoms/birth control History of pornography and erotica Banned art, ads, movies, music, commercials, books due to sexual content Anti-masturbation devices and efforts Sex and the Internet Genitals- the cultural erasure of the clitoris Genitals- the cultural norm of foreskin circumcision Sexual language and slang
Stepping back, I immediately noticed a theme. They all in some way relate to censorship and suppression, and that’s where I got the idea for the San Diego Museum of Sex and Censorship (title pending).
There were a few topics I came up with that don’t fit the censorship model, such as history of sex research, sex inventions, an interactive exhibit on sex and the 5 senses, and sexual violence (an idea I got after going to the Torture museum and seeing how often torture devices were designed for sexual torture specifically). I don’t know if/how I’ll fit these exhibits in.
It will probably be a year or more before I get this off the ground. I’ll be reaching out along the way. At some point I’ll want to form some committees to provide input and perspective, so this entire museum isn’t from the lens of one straight white woman, and you’ll hear from me then. And at some point I’ll want some money, and you’ll definitely hear from me then too 🙂
PS: Check out these first edition copies of the Kinsey Reports I just received in the mail today! I am such a nerd!
