Selina Raven

I am an artist; the human body, my favorite medium.

I am often asked how I became a dominatrix. To fully answer that question, I have to dig way back into my psyche and into some of my earliest memories. My mother is a devout Catholic; I spent 12 years in parochial schools, and the passion and ritual of Catholicism infused my daily life as a girl. I spent every morning (Saturdays excepted) at Mass, staring at the crucifix over the altar. The continual contemplation of a beautiful male body in obvious pain must have set something in motion in my mind.

My Catholic upbringing instilled the following concepts in my mind: pain is educational, the end result of pain and suffering is redemption, and it is possible to achieve a state of spiritual enlightenment through mortification of the flesh. Our American culture is absolutely obsessed with the cessation of all pain. But the deliberate application of intentional, easily moderated sensation can teach us more about our bodies, tell us about our bodily limitations and encourage us to stretch beyond what we thought was possible.

With so few formal rites of passage in our culture I view BDSM as a way for us to create ritual and make our lives more meaningful.

My move to San Francisco, my true home, as an adult, gave me a community of like-minded individuals to play with. I spent my early adulthood playing privately, and I began my practice as a professional dominatrix in 1998. I am still an active member of my local SM community, and my position as a member of the teaching staff at Cleo DuBois' Academy of SM Arts speaks volumes about my skill level and expertise.

My play is limited by a few self-imposed guidelines. I will never engage in any kind of play that is directly sexual, illegal, unsafe, or non-consensual. I carefully negotiate each scene to make sure that I, as well as my submissives, get exactly what we need out of the experience. I am an equal opportunity player; whether you are woman, man, trans, bi, queer, dyke, questioning, curious, exploring or experimenting, I invite you to consult with me to make your kinky fantasies reality.