What is Model Society?

Here are some examples of our work and our message. More importantly, here are the voices of our models and photographers, whose testimonies about the brand, the art form, and their personal experience are worth far more than my opinion.

What Models Say

Model Society has earned an impeccable reputation among models for a reason. Many regard our platform as their creative home. A new model recently sent us a message that said, "I wish I'd found you sooner. Model Society is the only space that holds the human body as sacred".

Healing Scarlett

Scarlett reached out to me personally after seeing the website and reading a blog post. She was on a personal mission to find healing. She trusted me (she trusted Model Society) to support her process. She helped me understand both the opportunity and responsibility or what we do.

What Photographers Say

We elevate those who hold humanity with reverence. The recognition has a meaningful influence on how the community sees itself.

April McKay

April is just an example of who our community leaders are. She is a model, photographer, and a close friend. She leads a fiercely loyal army of models who follow, trust, and support her. She guides groups into the wilderness for weeks to create art. She embraces her sensuality as an essential part of her humanity. She and the models set the terms and the rules. They run the workshops.

Samantha Olson

Samantha is our editor and curation director. She started as my assistant with no art experience. She fell in love with the artform and our mission. As an outspoken millennial, she shapes the messaging as a peer. Samantha co-wrote our community guidelines. I look to her for counsel and wisdom. She screens new members and grooms the image feed. I intended for Model Society to provide her and her family with a lifetime of security and prosperity. This is her voice and message.

The Best of Model Society

Our first Kickstarter generated over $180,000 in 30 days. You'll see from the video that our value proposition is dignity, reverence, and respect. Hundreds of models and photographers submitted work. Nearly as many women as men have purchased the book. The positive feedback has been overwhelming.

Messaging

We have a growing collection of core messages and articles that we call the Model Society Foundry. These messages embody our mission and help us communicate our values to art-lovers and new community members. Here are a couple of examples.

I felt shaken this morning.

Fellow Art Lover,

I read the news of the day with my morning coffee. So many stories were dark. My heart sank. I felt genuinely shaken.

Then my workday started as usual. I checked the Model Society image feed.

I was blown away by the contrast.

My screen was suddenly filled with exquisite beauty. I saw the human form presented with grace, respect, and dignity. I took a breath. Whew!

Our mission to establish a home for figurative fine art has evolved as the world has changed. It is no longer just about preserving the beauty of the human form – it is about recognizing the beauty of the human spirit.

Humans are complicated. We can be dark. We can do terrible things. But we can also be exquisite. We manage to create beauty in everyday moments and through broad chapters in history.

Any one of us can go down a thousand different paths in how we see life and how we influence the world around us.

But we don’t always freely choose how we see the world. We are constantly influenced by a firestorm of social media, the news, and the algorithms. Sometimes, it feels like I can’t see the world clearly through all the smoke.

So when I see this artwork, especially on a day like today, I am struck by a positive vision of humanity. And I am grateful.

In a world full of negative messages, the models, photographers, and artists of Model Society remind us… again, and again, and again, that there is something noble, worthy, and good about our shared human experience.

These inspired creatives remind us to see the light of our humanity through the smoke of darkness.

I know how much that reminder means to me. I hope it serves you just as much.

Thanks for being with us.

To understand the art, see how a model sees themself.

Fellow Art Lover,

After speaking with art models about their work, I realized something. If you want to understand the spirit of figurative fine art, look at model portfolios.

Photographers' portfolios often showcase a unique visual style. But a model’s portfolio is different. It features dozens of photographers, each with a different style and perspective.

With hundreds or even thousands of images to choose from, a model selects the ones that represent how they want to see themselves.

For the model, curating this collection is a statement of artistic and personal identity.

To appear nude in artwork, to be seen without armor, is an act of courage. The great fine art photographers are the ones who reward that courage with reverence.

When you look through model portfolios, some photographers appear again and again. These aren't always the ones with the most expensive gear or lighting. They are the photographers who understand that exceptional art is about more than beauty or sexuality.

In commercial culture, beauty is reduced to a product and leveraged for manipulation. It is a commodity that is extracted while humanity is discarded.

In contrast, a model’s portfolio reunites beauty with its essential humanity.

This is the critical distinction. Thank you for seeing the difference.