OCD: I'm sure that there are many men who are researching bodypainting books on Amazon after reading about you. How did you manage to turn painting women into a full time job?
BadassMF: The first time was in 1985 before Photoshop was an option. I was hired to paint photorealistic backgrounds for different shoots. At one job, I was asked by a photographer if I would paint the model's body with a design. I got the right answer to my question of "how much?" and decided to go for it. We experimented with tempera paint at first, but that ends up cracking and pulling hair out. Now, we use airbrushing equipment to get the right look.
OCD: How many girls would you say you've painted over the years?
BadassMF: Definitely over 1000. I try to paint about thirty girls each month. So in 2007, I probably painted almost 360 girls.
OCD: Who are some of the notable women that you've painted?
BadassMF: That depends. Most recently, I painted Tiffany Fallon for the February 2008 cover. I've also painted Sara Jean Underwood when she was on the Girls of the Pac 10 cover. So that's two Playmates of the Year right there. They also had me paint Vida Guerra as a tiger a few years ago. But I've even painted Christy Hemme before anybody had heard of her. She was actually an extra girl we used to create the model pose chart for the "real" models who were being photographed. So she would show up before them and get all of the poses done so the other models had exact instructions and pictures of what they needed to do.
OCD: Have you ever bodypainted any men?
BadassMF: No men, just women. We have a couple rules for our operation. Rule #1: Only paint girls. Rule #2: Refer to Rule #1. I guess we've painted men a few times, but it's never the full body. I've painted items like a chest plate and armor on guys. We did that for Victoria Fuller's husband. That's pretty much it though.
OCD: What has been your favorite design over the years?
BadassMF: Well, this style of art is pure capitalism. Obviously, I have to please a client just as in any other line of business. The Bellhop (model Blair O'Neal, interview below) was really neat for me. The first time is always good, but it can get old. I've painted about a million French maids. As an example, I'm working with NBC on some designs for Knight Rider. I really like the design we have with tire tracks on the model. But I can pretty safely assume that they'll want something with a Knight Rider logo t-shirt and headlights on the girl's boobs. So it always depends on the client. And we're not just talking Hef parties, we've painted girls for the biggest lesbian party in California.
OCD: What's it like to work for Hef?
BadassMF: Hef has very specific goals that he wants accomplished. For one, it has to look like real clothes -- he loves lingerie designs. Usually, he looks at 12-20 mock ups that I create and will pick about three from the new set. Then we'll go over the old designs I've done and he'll pick the rest from there. With Hef, it is most important that the design actually looks authentic.
OCD: I heard your whole family is involved with your bodypainting. Can you describe how that works?
BadassMF: My wife takes care of rhinestone application, any extra clothes (like hats), and detail work. My son and daughter are both airbrush painters.
OCD: That sounds like a delightful bonding experience. Do you need any extra help on your team? I'm available.
BadassMF: Well, get yourself to the Mansion and we can find a job for you. Can you hold a blowdryer and help with rhinestones?
OCD: I think I can figure it out... deal.
Blair O'Neal was one of Mark's models for bodypainting. Blair had worked a number of events during Super Bowl week, but she had never worked for Playboy.
OCD: You went to Arizona State which is famous for beautiful women. Is it everything it's cracked up to be?
Blair: Yes, there are a lot of pretty girls. I can't really gauge that though since I'm a girl. But I've heard from a lot of my guy friends that the girls are the reason they decided to apply to ASU.
OCD: How long have you been a model? Have you ever worked with Playboy before?
Blair: I went to Arizona State for four years and played for the golf team there. After I graduated, I went pro. I haven't worked for Playboy, but I was picked by Bridget for a fashion show in San Jose. Unfortunately, I had committed to the Lingerie Bowl and had to skip it. We had a red carpet "kickoff" event for that on the same night.
So this would be my first time working with Playboy. I actually didn't go to the casting to try to become a bodypainted model. But Katie from OneSource models was basically told me, "You have to do it! You have a HOT body and blonde hair, they'll love you!" I didn't think my boobs were big enough, but my friend Mary Lou was going to be bodypainted and she convinced me. She was the girl with the blue bottom and red top. I figured if I was ever going to do it for anybody, I should do it for Playboy.
OCD: Believe me, we all appreciate your enthusiasm. How long did it take to get painted?
Blair: I got there at 2PM and we were getting ready up until the event started. So it probably took about 8 hours to get it all done. They have to work on hair, makeup, and then the bodypaint. Mark and his team made me feel very comfortable though. We all did a shot before we had to go out and work the party.
OCD: Was this the longest time you've ever spent naked? Sleep and sex don't count.
Blair: Oh yeah. I was supposed to do the Lingerie Bowl, but I guess that doesn't really count either. The Lingerie Bowl actually got canceled because they couldn't get the permits though. I think I'm sick now because I was naked and cold for so long!
OCD: Did you like the bellhop outfit? I had to order the hat online.
Blair: It was great because it was Mark's first time to paint a bellhop. He said that my body was perfect for that design. It was something different and Mark liked how it turned out, so that's always good. People kept on asking me if I had a shirt on!
