Sunny Sapphire Zine Release
How are you today; how are you feeling about your zine release?
I’m so happy and a little sad! I swear this zine is all anyone has heard me talk about for the last few months. There was so much work that went into every aspect of it, from shooting all the photos to designing the layout. I’m a little sad it’s over.
What does the title Sunny Sapphire mean to you?
My dancer name is Sunny. And whenever someone really good comes into the club I'll give them my number and put "Sunny Sapphire" in their contacts.
How important is it to you to portray dancers through the female gaze?
Our whole job is centered around pleasing men, like strip clubs have rules for the dancers — nails done, hair done, makeup done. But I think women always appreciate each other a little more. We notice the lashes, the sparkly highlighter, and the little details in each others' outfits. So I just wanted to capture that in a cute way. It’s almost like a girly yearbook.
What’s a misconception of the industry that you want to rewrite?
That dancers don’t have other goals and aren’t motivated. Or on the contrary, that you HAVE to have another job and dancing is just a side hustle. If dancing or sex work, or whatever, is how you make money, you shouldn’t be judged for it. Also I understand not everyone can be open about dancing, but they should never feel ashamed for what they do. I overly glamorize it sometimes because I know it’s not always easy and I want to remind everyone how beautiful they are.
What was a highlight of shooting Sunny Sapphire?
I mean sometimes I show up to the club and I’m just not in the mood so I end up chillin’ in the locker room taking pics of all my friends while they get ready. And we’re all posing in front of the lockers, making TikToks, laughing, and having a good time.
What did it mean to you to have office involved in the creation of your zine?
office is connected to this zine in a lot of ways. A couple of the collage images on the locker room page are things I cut out of office magazines. Like the tattooed hand on that page is from the J Balvin cover story, who I actually met one time at Sapphire. And my first stripper shoot, which is now the cover of the zine, was originally shot for office. It’s also given me the space to be myself and explore different mediums for my creativity, without feeling that I have to hide that part of my life. I’m very grateful.
Are there bits of home that you reference in your work?
I always get bursts of creativity when I go home to Madison. I’ve been wanting to create this zine for a long time since I shot a lot of the images over a year ago. Last time I went home I got so many ideas all at once for this. So maybe my home isn’t directly referenced because I never danced in Wisconsin, but it’s a place where all my ideas flow to me so I can come back to New York and make it happen.
Where would you like to see yourself in five years from now?
I think for a lot of dancers there’s a purpose behind why we hustle so hard at the club. A lot of us are artists, or pursuing a passion, and dancing allows us to financially support ourselves while we chase our dreams. I hope that some really dope music artists see my work and want me to shoot them in the style I’ve shot all my friends, doing BTS on music videos, or working with a brand to create another zine. My mind is open to all the possibilities of where this could take me, I don’t like to look too far into the future.
Where can we find your zine?
Right now my website, my IG, Dashwood, and LAAMS!
