Tine
Sex educator, clitustrator
“My name is Tine, I’m a Queer bi non-monogamous Femme, and I’ve been on this planet for 26 years. The importance of joy is what guides me through life, and something I try to prioritize for myself and my community. This is definitely something I learned through ballroom, which I've been a part of since I was 17. I've always loved using my brain and creativity in several ways. Though, sexuality has shown itself to be the thread throughout my expression, which is how I ended up doing what I do. Yet most of all, it brings me joy.”
What and/or who inspired you to start your project(s)?
“I used to sell sex toys at parties in people’s homes. Before explaining the toys, I always asked my clients to draw a clitoris. In two years time, only two people ever got it right. This clearly exposed the lack of sex positive education in our society. When COVID happened and it became impossible to have toy-parties, I started drawing clits. I wanted to continue centering pleasure and spreading knowledge and joy. That’s how Clitsawonderfulworld was born. [Add this up to being a performer who enjoys expressing their sensuality in movement, and the theme of my life became very clear. I wanted to do something revolving sex.”
“During the pandemic, I finally validated my own Queerness, which also changed my life and perspective a lot, for the better. This fueled my passion for sex education even more: how did no-one in my community (including me) receive sex education that applied to us, valued us, or even acknowledged us. So much joy could have been experienced, and so much hurt could have been avoided, for so many people. This made me decide to start Ontbloot: my new business with which I provide sexual education in an innovative way. The focus is on fun, knowledge and consent. My workshops are for students and young people, as well as (young) adults and care providers.”
What about sharing your experiences and/or educating others speaks to you?
“I absolutely love being an educator. I love connecting with people, I love creating space to be vulnerable, I love the empowerment that comes with knowledge, and I love how one piece of information can shift your entire perspective. Being in front of groups also comes quite naturally to me, and I enjoy the challenge of maintaining people’s attention.”
Are there any recurring themes/issues you like to address within your work?
“Themes that recur the most within my workshops are Queerness and consent. I always include both, no matter who my audience is. We have to teach everyone about Queerness. Yes, also cis straight people. Yes, experienced Queer people too. Same goes for consent. We love presenting ourselves as unproblematic, as if we understand everything. The reality is that we all have a lot to unlearn, and just like humans, consent is complex. And of course the biggest theme of all: sex. But you’ll have to come to a workshop to check it all out.”
Did you have any queer role models? (if so, who?)
“As far as my job goes, Ruby Rare is a big inspiration to me. They are very playful and sex positive, and (amongst lots of other things) she has written a sex ed book for adults. Alok Menon is forever an inspiration for their artful way of speaking, kindness and empathy, wisdom, authenticity, capacity for connection, and stunning esthetic expression.”
