River--to shack up for the night in teepees, covered wagons, and Barbarella-style mirrored-ceiling shag-carpeted cocoons that double as motel rooms. Once behind the chain locks and peep holes, she takes out her Canon Rebel and surreptitiously photographs herself decked out in her vast wardrobe of vintage and fetish lingerie.

According to Lucy, every motel room has its own persona, and she morphs herself with wigs and costumes to fit the character of the room. She appears as Farah Fawcett in one portrait and as Clara Bow in the next, testing out myriad personas to fit with the often bizarre decor of these fossilized rooms from another era. Her work is as much about the motel rooms as it is about her. Motel paraphernalia such as room keys, Gideon's bibles, pink-papered toilet paper rolls and sanitizing strips appear as prominently in her photos as do Cuban-heeled stockings, 9-inch patent leather heels and drop-dead gorgeous lingerie.

What captivates her so about these environments? "There's a mystery to a hotel room. You never know what's going on behind those closed doors. They're a self-contained environment. Anything can happen."

Like, say, super sexxxy pin-up
photography?