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"You know that
dream that everyone
has when you wake
up and you're in
the middle of a
classroom and
you're naked?"
Colleen Cirocco
asked rhetorically.
"I'm over that."
Cirocco, an LSA senior, is over
the age-old naked-at-school night-
mare because she faces it head-on. She
gets naked at school, and she does it a
lot. Cirocco is one of about 30 models
employed part-time by the School of Art
& Design to pose nude before students in
figure drawing, painting and sculpture
classes.
Naturally, the idea of walking into a
well lit classroom, mounting a stage and,
disrobing in front of a group of University
students doesn't appeal to everyone. Nude
modeling pays well, though, and it offers
an unorthodox employment opportunity
in a college town where part-time work
can be excruciatingly normal.
Nude modeling gigs at the University
are available to students and non-stu-
dents alike, and while many models came
to pose after hearing about the money-
making endeavor through friends, others
stumbled upon it as a new avenue to self-
enrichment.
In the case of Steve Cunningham, a
57-year-old electrician from Hazel Park,
nude figure modeling was the beginning
of an entire new career. After suffer-
ing a minor heart attack and undergoing
a quintuple bypass surgery four years
ago, Cunningham parted ways with the
Detroit-area communications companyhe
had worked at for years and began model-
ing as often as possible.
"My wife suggested - because I was in
pretty good shape and had good balance,
having been a student of yoga for a while
- that I might try figure modeling," Cun-
ningham said.
For Cunningham, who half-jokingly
refers to himself as a "minimalist when
it comes to clothes," the move paid off.
Instructors were impressed with his
knack for modeling, and through referrals
he quickly found himself modeling for art
classes at more than a dozen schools and
institutions throughout Southeast Michi-
gan, includingthe University. Henow gets
booked for about eight three-hour model-
ing sessions in a given week, and he's come
to appreciate the job because it forces him
* to keep his body in shape.
"I'm at that age where the phrase 'use it
or lose it' is no longer academic," he dead-
panned.
In Cirocco's case, nude modeling
offers the chance to interface with art
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weekend
essentials
Apr. 8 to Apr. 11
U
CONCERT
This Saturday, the
Men's Glee Club will
perform twice at Hill
Auditorium to celebrate
its 150th anniversary.
The performance at 3
p.m. will feature hun-
dreds of Glee Club
alumni and an 8 p.m.
performance will fea-
ture the current mem-
bers. The earlier event
will include folk songs,
"Michigan songs"
and Franz Biebl's "Ave
Maria." Look for the
Friars to join the party.
Ticket information at
www.ummgc.org.
ON BLU-RAY
For anyone rockin' a
kick-ass home theater
system, you'll finally
have the chance to
see the the Battle of
Helm's Deep, the fiery
Balrog and Boromir
sounding the horn
of Gondor in 1080p.
Yes, "The Lord of the
Rings" trilogy is now
on Blu-ray. But keep in
mind, these are only
the theatrical version.
The extended editions
will be released when
the studio is ready
to squeeze another
Benjamin from you.
s
AT THE MIC
Minneapolis singer-
songwriter Mason
Jennings is known to
deliver sets of wist-
ful, off-the-cuff folk,
winning over festival
audiences around
the country since the
late '90s. Don't miss
the chance to see the
troubadour and surf
aficionado up close
and personal at the
intimate settings of
The Ark tomorrow
night. Tickets are
available from $25.
ON STAGE
This Friday, check out
the percussive stylings
of Groove: The Univer-
sity's STOMP-esque
performance group
makes sweet beats
using garbage cans,
brooms and what-
ever else they can get
their rhythmic hands
on. The group will be
showcasing their jams
tomorrow at 7:30 p.m.
at the Michigan The-
ater in a performance
titled Bust a Groove.
Tickets are $5 for stu-
dents, $8 for adults.
and participate
in its creation.
"I really am inter-
ested in helping people
learn how to do art," she said.
"This was another way for me to
offer myself, to show people adifferent
skill and to help the students learn how to
draw better."
When she's not modeling, Cirocco com-
mits her time to the Prison Creative Arts
Project, through which she gets another
chance to contribute to the conception of
art by assisting prisoners with writing.
Nude modeling offers her something dif-
ferent, though, because it allows her to
challenge her self image.
"Growing up, I always had body-image
issues, and Ithink Iovercame alotofthose
in college," she explained. -"And model-
ing - being naked in a room full of people
who are looking at you really closely and
drawing all of your imperfections - was
a way for me to sort of conquer that, once
and for all."
of course, not allmodels approach their
work with such personal conviction, even
if they take the job seriously.
"Well, it pays pretty well, especially
for the type of job you can get in col-
lege,". admitted School of Music, Theater
& Dance senior Jacob Merkin, alluding to
the $I5-an-hour wage paid to models by
the University.
"I'm a fan of mindless labor," he noted.
That ability to embrace mindlessness
of modeling suits him and his colleagues
well, because three-hour modeling ses-
sions can be an exercise in brain starva-
tion and sensory deprivation. Simply,
modeling can be quite boring.
More than self confidence and social
courage, what models depend on to sur-
vive a posing session is a creative mind
capable of keeping itself stimulated. The
strategies vary, but the models all have a
few go-to methods for preserving their
sanity while they arrest their motion in
the center of the classroom.
For Merkin, who nonchalantly
described the experience as "relaxing,"
the cerebral downtime in the studio
allows him to be surprisingly productive.
See NUDE MODELS, Page 4B
DRAWINGS BY MARISSA MCCLAIN & SARAH SQUIRE
DESIGN BY SARAH SQUIRE & MAX COLINS