What do you think would happen if you got struck by lightning and—let’s say—drank a few glasses of absinthe? In Trina Merry’s case it triggered a series of events that led her into a life of art and painting on nude bodies. Trina is best known for her live art performances where she paints on human canvases in a trompe l’œil style, camouflaging her subjects into the environment. Since 2005, Trina has traveled the world creating her unique works and has become one of the world’s most renowned bodypaint artists.
It all started in 2005 when Trina was struck by lightning. She moved to Yosemite due to her need to avoid power lines and electrical currents, to which she had developed a painful sensitivity. Trina, who had always been involved in art “since the age of two,” spent a year in the woods painting nature while recovering from the lightning strike. During this time she hung out with her friend, Amanda Palmer of the Dresden Dolls, who—over a few glasses of absinthe—persuaded Trina to participate in a performance where she was bodypainted live onstage. For Trina, this was “a transformational experience,” leading to a fascination with bodypainting. Trina tells me, “It was the most exhilarating, sexy experience of my life. I’m glad I did it. I stepped into a moment of courage and I had someone around me who could see something in me; to push me in the right direction. I will forever be grateful for that. It changed my life.”
That experience was the impetus for Trina’s foray into becoming a bodypaint artist herself. And since then, Trina has created hundreds of unique bodypaint artworks and is continuously traveling to all parts of the world for her commissions. She has performed live bodypainting events at such notable spots as the Supreme Court, the Tower of Pisa, the Giza Pyramids, the Great Wall of China, and the Brooklyn Bridge, among dozens of other iconic locations around the globe.
Cherry Blossoms by Trina Merry
Giza Pyramids by Trina Merry
White House Embrace by Trina Merry
Great Wall of China by Trina Merry
I first encountered Trina five years ago on New York City’s High Line park, where she was creating her latest work; painting a nude female model against the backdrop of a huge sculpture that had recently been installed in the park. As a photographer for the High Line I was there to document her work. We instantly connected and have remained friends ever since.
July 23, 2015, the day I first met Trina bodypainting on the High Line park in New York City.
Photo by David Goodman
So THAT’S how she does it.
Photo by David Goodman
Trina and model, Kirsten Jaskela. Sweet, but is that paint on Trina’s face?
Photo by David Goodman
Since that day on the High Line I have photographed a number of Trina’s live bodypainting art performances and on more than one occasion Trina and I have enjoyed sharing a joint together—pre-Covid, of course. Trina, an avowed cannabis aficionado, knew of my connection to Puffin Farm—an organic cannabis farm in Washington state—as their photographer. One day I asked Trina, “How would you like to do one of your pieces at Puffin?” To which she immediately replied with an enthusiastic, “Yes, absolutely!” It took several months of planning and some rearranging of Trina’s schedule as she needed to do the painting just prior to harvest in order to capture the plants in full bloom. We set the event date for October 1 to officially kick off “Croptober”—the popular nickname for cannabis harvest season, most of which occurs during the month of October.
Throwback: The cannabis field at Puffin Farm, just prior to harvest in early October, 2018.
Photo by David Goodman
Let the cutting begin.
Photo by David Goodman
When the cart is filled with the freshly cut plants Casey will wheel it directly to one of the drying rooms.
Photo by David Goodman
The harvested plants are immediately hung upside down in special temperature and humidity controlled drying rooms.
Photo by David Goodman
The plants are harvested one by one and row by row, a slow but steady process.
Photo by David Goodman
On the designated day of the event, the Washington weather could not have been kinder. During harvest season the temperatures usually range somewhere between 40ºF and 60ºF. But on the day of the painting the temperature was a surprisingly balmy 85º, a much better situation for the models, who would be standing outside in the buff for many hours at a time. This was Trina’s first time on a pot farm and it was a real eye-opener for her. She says, “One of the owners, Jade Stefano, gave me a tour of the farm. You know, at the end of the day, farming is farming. But it’s fascinating to know about the farming methods particular to this type of crop; the type of soil and the approach and methods they use, how green their efforts are. Everything is sungrown and organic and they emphasize quality over quantity. I didn’t expect the plants to be so tall and so sticky. I learned a lot about the plants. It’s so wonderful to not have it be this mysterious, taboo thing. The history and process of cannabis is fascinating.”
Morning session: Trina paints Jordan.
Photo by Matthew Simmons
Trina’s inspiration for the piece at Puffin Farm was “Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden.” Trina tells me, “That’s a concept I really loved for this project. And Jordan—the female model—was perfect for it. She’s so statuesque and beautiful in a classical way, like Aphrodite. So to me it was sort of like a nurturing of the plants before harvest, with Aphrodite—the goddess of love—taking over the field. And then, with the inclusion of Oliver—the male model—who is a trapeze artist from Cirque du Soleil, it turned into this lovely Adam and Eve in the Garden with no restrictions and able to partake of whatever is in the Garden, before they bit into the apple, still unashamed.”
In the early morning of the event Trina first painted Jordan, who is an artist in her own right. Jordan is known for her sex-positive artwork and cannabis advocacy on her Instagram page—provocatively named @ittybittycherry—where she has a strong following.
Jordan deep in the weed.
Photo by Matthew Simmons
The composition of the cannabis buds starts to take shape on Trina’s human canvas, Jordan.
Photo by Matthew Simmons
Budding brushwork detail.
Photo by Matthew Simmons
Trina’s first finished artwork of the day: “Aphrodite Blessing the Cannabis Field,” executed amongst buds of Hindu Kush, Puffin Farm’s most awarded cannabis cultivar.
Oliver Parkinson—the male model—arrived in the afternoon for his painting session. Oliver is a trapeze artist who fell in love with the aerial art after taking several trapeze classes. He says, “I connected with a flying trapeze artist and worked with her to develop an act and have been doing that for ten years, performing all over the U.S., Canada, and Europe. My partner and I had recently been signed to join a Cirque du Soleil touring show; and then Covid hit.” Then Oliver adds, laughing, “By the way, if you’re interested, I also have a PHD in chemistry.” In fact, I was actually fascinated.
This did not look like Trina was painting a cannabis plant, so I wasn’t quite sure where she was going with this at first.
Photo by Matthew Simmons
Leaves of grass.
Photo by Matthew Simmons
It’s getting there. And now I’m starting to see what the white part is all about.
Photo by Matthew Simmons
I wondered what it was like for the models to go through the bodypainting process outside in the growing field, naked. Jordan says, “It’s kind of weird because you don’t see what Trina is doing, and you don’t realize what’s happening or going down. And there were people watching. So that felt weird. Standing in one position for a long time in the sun was hard, but the actual painting itself wasn’t bad. It feels like a tickle. It was pretty liberating to be naked in the field for like, all day. It was fun.”
Oliver had been previously bodypainted by Trina so he knew a little bit more in terms of what to expect. “I met Trina about four years ago at a party for which she was hired to bodypaint the guests,” he tells me. “And about a year after that she painted me down in L.A. She was doing a series where she would watch a Bob Ross episode and paint that onto someone’s body. It was really cool. She painted one episode on my chest and one on my back. But this one at Puffin Farm was a little bit different,” Oliver says with a laugh. “This was the first time I was painted completely naked.” I asked, “So, what’s that like to be completely painted?” He continues, “The funny part was, we’re sitting there having a conversation and she’s doing my thighs and my torso and we’re just chatting back and forth and then she started painting my dick and we both went silent. Trina and I were right in mid-conversation and we both just instantly shut up. And after about a minute of this awkward silence she says—in a sing-song fashion—‘So, I’m painting your dick.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, should we talk through this?’ And she’s like, ‘Yeah, sure.’ ”
Regarding the feeling of Trina brushing wet paint onto his body, Oliver says, “It was kind of nice. It was a hot day so it felt a little bit cool. The physical side is fine. I was hyper-aware of trying not to move, and I probably moved a bit too much. The weird part about it was there were about five or six people there. And what Trina does is so cool to look at, but when it’s on you, you just notice these people watching you, because you can’t see what she’s doing. You’re out there naked for about an hour and a half and it’s just these people staring intently at you and you kind of have to keep reminding yourself that they are not staring at you at all; they’re staring at what she’s doing, at the art she’s creating.” I couldn’t help thinking, “Yeah, but they are also still definitely staring at you.”
Puffin Farm co-owner Cyrena Stefano observed much of the event, and was astounded at the way it unfolded. “Trina is so focused. She has like a laser vision,” Cyrena says. “The scenery was absolutely perfect and the timing of when the painting was done was totally synergistic. It was like it was orchestrated by the heavens. You know, it was an all-day event. Trina spent so much time and energy. They were working really hard and the models were standing there for hours. It was really exhausting. Then the light came out and hit the artists, perfectly illuminating the scene. It’s like mood lighting out in the cannabis field. And it’s so intense at sunrise and sunset. So as the sun was setting the whole landscape started glowing. And, snap! There it was! The sunset was so perfect. And then when it all came together at the very end it was: Boom! And every second was totally worth it. And when she finished, I stepped back to look and get perspective, and it was like, where are these people? They totally blend in. I was completely moved by the timing of the whole thing. It was absolutely magical.”
I wondered whether creating a work of art on a pot farm held any special meaning for Trina. She tells me, “So much of my art is about freedom and the expression of our natural selves. So, to be creating in an environment like Puffin Farm felt really free and I felt like it was really beautiful because pot is also natural. It was a very special day.”
Trina’s finished artwork: “Adam and Eve in the Garden.”
Signed, limited edition prints of the Puffin Farm harvest pieces are available for purchase on Trina’s website, www.trinamerry.com.
Puffin Farm’s award-winning cannabis products are available at fine dispensaries throughout Washington state
Jordan’s popular Instagram is @ittybittycherry
Oliver’s trapeze antics are on view on his Instagram: @oliverandcompanytrapeze
David Goodman is a writer and photographer based in New York City. His forthcoming book about Puffin Farm is due to be released in 2021. For more info, go to: www.davidgoodmanphotographs.com
Instagrams: @david_goodman_photos, @puffin.farm