Madonna -Human Nature - Madonna -Human Nature

JUL 01 1995 · 12:00

Madonna -Human Nature - Madonna -Human Nature (1995) Director: Jean-Baptiste Mondino Era: Mid-90s Post-Erotica Madonna (1995) - Defiant R&B/pop provocation era; Madonna reclaiming narrative control following the Sex/Erotica backlash cycle via high-concept S&M-inflected choreographic minimalism. High curatorial value as a formally inventive, culturally resonant mid-90s provocation artifact that sits at the intersection of fashion photography, feminist pop theory, and S&M subculture aesthetics. One of Mondino's most architecturally rigorous video compositions, and a definitive document of Madonna's creative defiance during one of pop's most contested gender-politics flashpoints. Tier 1 archival priority. Context: Released June 6, 1995 as the fourth and final single from Madonna's sixth studio album Bedtime Stories, 'Human Nature' was a direct artistic rebuttal to the critical and commercial backlash Madonna received following the 1992 releases of the Sex book and the Erotica album. The video, set in claustrophobic white boxes, populated with latex-clad dancers, literalized the song's theme of defiant unapologetic sexuality. The mid-90s cultural landscape was marked by growing tension between pop mainstream conservatism and emerging sex-positive feminist discourse. The video's S&M imagery, filtered through humor and choreographic precision, prefigured the aesthetic vocabularies later adopted by Rihanna ('S&M', 2011) and Christina Aguilera ('Not Myself Tonight', 2010), cementing it as a durable reference point for provocateur pop video-making. Director notes: Filming took place at Raleigh Studios in Hollywood, California over two days, May 6–7, 1995. Produced by Anita Wetterstedt of Palomar Productions. Edited by Robert Duffy. Mondino conceived the white cubicle/box set design to constrain the performance space and foreground body movement. Inspiration for the S&M aesthetic came from the erotic illustration work of artist Eric Stanton. Mondino and Madonna disagreed on approach, Madonna wanted a more dance-oriented clip; Mondino introduced Stanton's work as a counterproposal, resulting in the hybridized S&M-choreographic format. The video premiered on MTV on May 19, 1995, and was officially released June 6, 1995. It was later included on the compilations The Video Collection 93:99 (1999) and Celebration: The Video Collection (2009). This was Mondino's third Madonna collaboration, following 'Open Your Heart' (1986) and 'Justify My Love' (1990).