Jacq’s Story
I inherited my artistic personality from my mother. It came to the surface at an early age, and as I grew up in Ontario, Canada, I frequently occupied myself with making art and dancing. Yet when it came time for me to go to university, I chose to major in Russian literature, and once I was done with that, I took a job in advertising. I quit two months later because I found it unengaging.
So, I moved to Australia and became a stripper. Finally, I found a career that felt right for me.
Two years later, I journeyed to New York City, where I continued to strip. I became friends with a comedian I met in the strip club there, and one evening he took me to his stand-up show. I was immediately struck by how he became a different person on stage! It was a bit of an epiphany for me, and I recognised that comedy was all about expressing humanity. Comedians use humor as a shortcut to connect with their audience and share a human experience. That’s what strippers do, too, only instead of jokes, they use a somewhat different kind of shortcut. This realisation propelled me to take a comedy class, which is how I became a comedian. My career was evolving, and it felt like an even better fit than before.
A few years later, I got into Instagram. Initially, I only used the platform to share simple artwork and illustrations, but I honed my craft as an illustrator over time. Out of this process, my comics just sort of happened organically. So, too, did my clothing line, Strippers Forever.
As an artist and a comedian, I try to use the stage to destigmatise sex work. In my comedy show, I use a lot of stories and jokes to make people laugh, but I educate them at the same time. Experience has shown me that humour can inspire conversations, and I use it as a tool to speak the kind of uncomfortable truths that people do not want to acknowledge. A lot of strippers bring their parents to my show to educate them. I’m grateful to be able to do that. Stripping is often misunderstood, judged, and ridiculed in our society, but it was a liberating experience that empowered me both financially and as a woman.
It’s also a lot of fun.
For more about Jacq, check out her website, follow her on Instagram, or listen to her audiobook.
Artist Notes
“Jacq is shown on stage performing stand-up comedy and stripping. The illustration features varied audience members, representing the people who come for fun as well as the ones who come to be educated. The light in the background not only represents those of the club, but also Jacq’s different artistic ventures and success.”
Published Sep 30, 2020
Updated Aug 30, 2023
Published in Issue VIII: Art