Regardez-moi. 

Being naked approaches being revolutionary; going barefoot is mere populism.

~ John Updike

Iranian actress Golshfteh Farahani, has been banned from returning to her home country for appearing partially nude on the cover of the French magazine Madame Le Figaro. Her half-naked beauty is also featured in Jean-Baptiste Mondino’s Corps et Âmes (Bodies and Souls), a short film introducing the actors nominated for the 2012 Cesar Awards, better known as the French Oscars.

The fact that even the most dignified artistic attempts to portray nudity, are still igniting such international controversy proves – once again – that as a global alley we would greatly benefit from some more naked therapy.

There’s vulnerability in taking off one’s clothes. There’s raw, imperfect, heartbreaking beauty. And there’s also courage when doing it for a noble purpose.

[Warning: video contains slight nudity]

*Not all the subtitles are accurate. I’ve tried to adapt the text below from different English translations as well as my own interpretation (that of a French lover but not exactly a speaker). Any translation input is welcome in the comments section. Click here to watch without subtitles.

Look at me
Right now, naked
Free from the body and soul
Under no pressure but my own
I commit my whole being
Still a virgin, I surrender 
I return to chaos
My DNA scattered forever
I dance away from myself
I escaped from my own prison
My only art is to act
In your dreams, I’ll be the stage
I’ll make vibrate the subtle words
Like fruit on my tongue
I’ll give you my skin
Bloody, maddened, filled to the brim
With tears and laughter 
I’ll take your breath away
With a sound so loud, a light so bright
In a crowd, I’ll be swept away
By your impossibility, your shame
Covering my features
Lest I be cold or scared for days
Or deaf to the sound of life,
I dive into the vacuum of time
Right now, naked
Free from the body and soul 
I commit my whole being
Look at me
Look at me…

And you? How naked do you get?

[Photo: http://www.facebook.com/Golshifteh.Farahani.Fan.Club]