My Friend, Madison Young, Will Be In Minneapolis This Weekend
Madison Young by Lydia Daniller
San Francisco, CA – Madison Young, the kinky girl next door, will be in Minneapolis this weekend at the Smitten Kitten on Saturday and Sunday at 7:00pm. Bear witness to this revolutionary porn star sharing her secrets on how to create queer feminist bdsm porn on Saturday, and a reading from her forthcoming memoirs, The Tail of a Bondage Model on Sunday.
Have you ever wanted to dabble in creating your own porn for you and your lover, for commercial distribution, for your own kinky pleasures? Learn how from the perspective of porn producer, director and performer and activist extraordinaire Madison Young. Those in attendance will be able to ask burning questions about the LA porn scene as well as the San Francisco queer art and porn world. Madison will be also showing clips from her upcoming movie releases.
Madison Young will be available for autographs and questions at both events and will be bringing with her limited addition Madison Young’s Erotic Breast Self Exam Posters.
Both events will be well attended. Please RSVP by calling 612-721-6088.
The Smitten Kitten is located at 3010 Lyndale Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55408
http://www.smittenkittenonline.com.
For more information, please contact Brian Gross, BSG PR, (818) 340-4422. Email: brian@Bsgpr.com.
About Madison Young:
Madison Young is an international award-winning bondage model and pornstar. Ms. Young has been awarded “Best SM Suspension Model” by Bishop Awards and was the submissive star of last year’s AVN Award-winning BDSM video. She has been directing BDSM and erotic films since 2005 and has won great acclaim for her video line, Madison Bound Productions. Madison Bound Productions has been awarded the 2008 Feminist Porn Awards and has been gaining attention from the erotic film festival circuit.
According to Young, “Our high quality productions, girl-next-door appeal, and hardcore queer sex in a bright, sex-positive atmosphere is what our fans are drawn to. It’s porn that couples watch together, appealing to both a straight/queer and kinky/vanilla audience.” Ms Young intends on revolutionizing the porn industry one wanker at a time with hot, aggressive queer and kinky rough sex. When Madison isn’t performing and directing, she is running her own non-profit feminist arts organization, Femina Potens Art Gallery (www.feminapotens.org) , which has produced over 200 LGBT art events in the last four years.
Catalina Interviews Kink.com CEO Peter Acworth on CatalinaLoves.com
Kink.com CEO Peter Acworth
Recently I [Catalina] interviewed Kink.com CEO Peter Acworth. I think the man is an absolutely kinky genius and I have a huge crush on him. I watched the documentary on BehindKink.com and I read an extensive article written about my favorite CEO in the New York Times and then I came up with a few questions of my own:
You’ve mentioned that acquiring the Armory was like your idea of a bondage fantasy neverneverland, where the rules of normal society are overridden by the rules of the BDSM society. After getting all unpacked and moved in, does it still feel like a fantasy neverneverland? Have you found it restraining or confining that it is a historical site?
The Armory feels like a dream come true. Bondage literature such as “The Story of O”, “Exit to Eden”, and the “Sleeping Beauty” series by Anne Rice always seem to revolve around a central place where the BDSM rules of dominance and submission preside. This space is usually depicted as a castle, and so when we were looking to relocate Kink.com’s central offices, the fact that there was an affordable castle that had been vacant for 30 years in the middle of fetish capital San Francisco felt like nothing less than divine intervention.
I think people are somewhat surprised by how ‘normal’ things seem. We have sexual harassment training, executive strategic retreats, benefits like 401K, annual reviews and all-hands presentations just like any company our size. So if you were to come to see us work at the Armory, you might be disappointed by a somewhat corporate feel to the place. However, as we build our various sets, the space is fast becoming an adult playground. This is especially true in the basement which is becoming a myriad of various dungeons and fantasy rooms.
I am very excited by our 4th floor development. This will be a space that we are calling “Roissy” (from the Story of O), and it will be a 24×7 live reality show set in the Edwardian era, which was a period of decadence following the oppressive reign of Queen Victoria. The idea is to reproduce the ‘Great House’ structure depicted in films like “Remains of the Day” where masters, mistresses and servants live in a tightly regimented regime. We will invite BDSM lifestyle players to interact in this world, and interact with our customers in this perpetual interactive live show.
The Armory dates from exactly this Edwardian era, so the historical nature of the Armory does nothing but add to the mystique surrounding this idea. The Armory is not only Kink.com’s home – it also serves as a wonderful branding tool.
In the documentary on BehindKink.com, a lot of the people who work at Kink.com mention that they are inspired to be as creative as they can be and most mention having learned more on the job than they could have ever imagined. Do you see Kink.com as a revolutionary company where people actually like to go to work? Was this part of your plan from the beginning, to create an environment where people were encouraged to grow, think, and use their educations?
I think that we provide a work environment which stands by our mission statement and is very all inclusive. For instance, its absolutely fine to be gay, transgendered, or to paint your hair red or have lots of tattoos, and to really be who you are. I can’t imagine life any differently, and I sometimes get a rude awakening when friends remind about life inside investment banks, where, heaven forbid, I once considered working.
We also feel passionately that a product line should come from an individual’s actual fantasies. Since we have an open policy about new product proposals, this encourages employees to be creative and, necessarily, to be open about their sexualities. This atmosphere sometimes creates some challenges for our HR team, but I think it is very healthy and motivating.
You’ve said that you essentially saw a good idea and ripped it off – the idea to sell porn on the internet from a firefighter and the name Hogtied from the magazine Hogtie. It seems to me that a lot of other companies are doing the same to Kink.com, at least trying to rip off the Kink.com model. How do you feel about that?
I find it flattering and it doesn’t bother me (indeed, how could it? That would certainly be hypocritical of me). Companies have and will copy our basic business model and I hope they continue to do so. The fact is that all people who produce quality BDSM material generally share a common interest in the subject matter. I can’t speak for everyone in the industry, but I feel an affinity to others in the business. Additionally, a prevalence of good BDSM material indicates a general recognition and acceptance that the BDSM fantasies are healthy, common, and absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. I.e. I feel that more successful companies like kink.com serve to further demystify alternative sexualities which, in turn, serves all of us.
On a business level, I think we are sufficiently ahead of the competition to be the ‘place to watch’ for innovation for the next decade. While companies may copy our basic style of producing content, I think we are ahead of the game with our fresh content lines and our ideas for community and interactive live shows, such as Roissy.
Obviously Hogtied.com is your “baby” and though you’ve had several guest directors, really it’s been you and then Matt as the visionaries. How do you see Lochai fitting into your vision for Hogtied.com? Did you choose him in part because you appreciate the aesthetic of his rope bondage? It seems to me that you are incorporating the artistic side of bondage with the hardcore domination reputation of Hogtied.com. How did you come to your decision?
I interviewed Lochai for a different project named “Bondage Trials” about 4 years ago. At that time I was very impressed with his ropework and sense of detail and aesthetic. I am extremely pleased that he has chosen to join us to take on Hogtied.com! The beauty of BDSM is that everyone has a different style. Lochai is a fabulously talented rigger with a unique style, and I think he will be another great addition to the team.
How has Kink weathered the 2257 maelstrom, and do you think a change in administration will loosen things up?
Like many companies, we were caught up in the frenzy of panic that engulfed the industry during the Bush Administration. There was a period when the 2257 law was changing so frequently that it was difficult to keep up, and we had several staff members doing nothing but working on compliance.
Luckily, we had always been diligent and kept our records clean, and we are large enough to have a properly indexed database which could keep up with the changes in the law. It was very sad to see some BDSM websites close down because the burden of record keeping was too onerous. Recently though, the 2257 law has been deemed unconstitutional by the 6th circuit. My hope is that the law will get rewritten in a format which is sensible, and that there will be reasonable regulation to ensure minors are not depicted without having a chilling effect on free speech.
Thank you, Peter, for making some time for me! Best of luck to Lochai, who begins his new job today at Hogtied.com.
Official Press Release…. I am off to SF!!
Lochai "working" at Hogtied.com
SAN FRANCISCO (August 22, 2008) – Award-winning fine art bondage photographer Lochai will take over from Matt Williams as director of Kink.com’s Hogtied.com, the company announced today.
“Hogtied was our first site and we still consider it our flagship,” said Kink.com founder and CEO Peter Acworth. “We’re very pleased to bring Lochai on to continue the Hogtied tradition. He’s one of the best-known bondage riggers around and for years he’s been out there in the community, both as a photographer and as an educator. Most importantly, he really gets what’s fun and beautiful and hot about women in bondage – he understands the Kink.com esthetic. I’m very much looking forward to working with him.”
Lochai’s inaugural update on Hogtied.com is a sizzling 56-minute scene with 22-year-old Virginian beauty Isobel Wren. Shot when Lochai was auditioning for his new role, the scene currently headlines the site, In it, Wren is placed in Lochai’s trademark Japanese-influenced rope bondage and subjected to a stunning number of screaming orgasms, including a copious squirt. Throughout, Lochai’s sardonic humor tempers the intense bondage and stimulation.
Said Lochai:
“Everything that’s done in any of the Kink.com sites is real, so it’s not like I’m acting a part. I’m actually being myself. I’m sarcastic, I’m a smart ass, I laugh during scenes and I also console when someone’s upset. I’m going to be doing my real play, my real life, within the walls of the Armory, because that’s what’s expected by the customers — and that’s what’s expected by Kink.com. I’m going to be super comfortable there, because I feel like I’m home.”
An award winning photographer whose work appears in galleries as well as in publications like The British Journal of Photography, Secret, Skin Two, Bizarre, and in his own fine art books. His award winning image “Beach Bound” was created with fellow Kink.comer Claire Adams. Lochai is equally well known as a bondage educator, teaching classes at conferences around the United States and doing public scenes in nightclubs and at fetish events. A founding director of the Photo Artisans Guild (PAG), in West Palm Beach Florida, he was also the co-founder and co-curator of the Traveling Erotic Art Show, which spent two years touring the United States. He also moderates a group on BDSM social networking site FetLife, CommUNITY Building, that seeks to build BDSM and alternative sexuality leadership skills.
Lochai takes over from longtime Hogtied.com director Matt Williams, who began directing the site in 2003. Williams was recently promoted to Kink.com’s Creative Director, and will be guiding creative development on new sites as well as Kink.com’s existing sites. “I’m looking forward to helping with the overall creative level,” said Williams. “I’m going to work with existing sites and new sites both, developing the look and feel, and sharing fantasies that I have in my head — I have great ideas for each one of our sites.”
Williams will continue to direct unscripted girl-girl erotic wrestling site UltimateSurrender.com, which he calls “my little baby.” “I’m going to hang on to that – I have some great ideas for the future.”
Lochai expressed his excitement about his new role.
“Every person who’s ever sat down in front of me in a classroom, or who has surrounded me out in a club to watch what I’m doing, has wanted this job. They want to get paid to tie up beautiful women and get them off – and that’s my job. It’s a wonderful feeling, and an affirmation that my kink pays off.”
A longtime Florida resident, Lochai will be relocating in September to the San Francisco area. He says he’ll continue his work teaching bondage and SM lifestyle classes, both at the half-dozen conferences he traditionally attends annually, and in the San Francisco area.
For more information about Lochai, visit his site Kirinawa.com or his blog at Nawalochai.com email the Kink.com Public Relations Manager at thomas@kink.com. Webmasters interested in promoting Kink.com content, including Hogtied.com, please visit www.KinkyDollars.com or email the Kink.com affiliate manager at terry@kink.com.
ABOUT HOGTIED.COM: Hogtied was the first site in the Kink.com network, directed by founder Peter Acworth from 1997 until Matt Williams took over in 2003. Updated every Tuesday, Hogtied.com offers members more than 15,000 streaming minutes and more than 84,000 photos in over 400 episodes that feature beautiful women subjected to sexual rope bondage, erotic punishment, and repeated orgasms.
ABOUT KINK.COM: San Francisco erotica studio Kink.com provides authentic fetish entertainment that seeks to demystify alternative sexualities and inspire sexual adventurers. Since the launch of its first site, Hogtied.com, in 1997, Kink.com has developed a network of premium adult sites that now operate from studios in the San Francisco Armory, a decommissioned National Guard facility with sets ranging from stark dungeons to luxurious pieds-à-terre. Kink.com also operates a free documentary site at BehindKink.com and the leading fetish affiliate network, KinkyDollars.com.
Contact Lochai
