No pictures exist of me naked anywhere in the universe. Even after a couple years of modelling in New York and Europe, there are no shots of me in see-through tops or with bare breasts.  There is no morally objectionable footage of me floating around from an adventuresome weekend with an ex-boyfriend, or snapshots of me bearing it all in a clandestine drawer somewhere.

Perhaps Jordan Matter would say to this…Pourquoi Pas?!

And you know what?  I honestly don’t really have an answer for the New York-based photographer.

Jordan Matter’s Uncovered is a book of portraits and personal statements from over 80 brave women, who posed bare-breasted for the project in public locations across New York City.  And Uncovered’s breasts run the gamut—they are different sizes and shapes, some are saggy and some are perky, some are pear-shaped and others are balloon-shaped.

Laid brazenly bare, you cannot help but to react to Matter’s undertaking.  New York city is a vast metropolis, not the stunning beaches in the South of France.  Thus, not only does seeing topless women parade around New York demand a response, this unusual sight provokes a barrage of questions.

Says Matter: “I learned that a woman’s beauty is how she perceives herself. Women’s perceptions of their bodies seem very destructive; they are so hard on themselves. Once my photo subjects became comfortable with working through their modesty, they were often in no hurry to put their shirts back on. They felt freed. One woman said to me, ‘You have no idea what you’ve done for me.’”

C’est Vrai—Uncovered features all types of beauty.  Over the period of six years, Jordan Matter’s subjects varied drastically in terms of age, education and profession.

Flipping through the book’s pages, I wondered if I’d ever find the courage to stand in the middle of the meatpacking district or the Great Lawn of Central Park in nothing but my Birthday Suit.

A woman’s body has always been a site where a culture’s hopes and fears, optimism and desires can be exercised.  Matter was asking his subjects (mere strangers on the street) a series of complex questions.  It was not simply: may I take a topless portrait of you? These courageous women voice in their interviews that they were faced with the following questions: do you feel empowered or disempowered by nudity?  In what ways does this defy convention?  Do I feel shame and inadequacy?  Or do I feel beautiful?

I can’t answer all of those questions just yet.  And in the meantime, I think I’ll just keep my top on and enjoy my copy of Uncovered….

Uncovered is now available on Amazon.com or through jordanmatter.com. (Bonus: The books are signed if you order through Jordan’s site.) Plus, ten percent of the profits benefit the Somaly Mam Foundation, a nonprofit public charity committed to ending sexual slavery in Southeast Asia.