calendario eventi  :: 

X

27/3/2014

Stroke

Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art, New York

[New York – February, 2014] Stroke: From Under the Mattress to the Museum Wall, is a historical retrospective of sexy and erotic illustrations by artists who made work for the gay male magazines from the 1950s to the 1990s. Curated by New York-based illustrator Robert W. Richards, Stroke features 80 original illustrations by 25 artists. This exhibition of a forgotten body of work not only explores the male form, but for the first time ever, offers an examination of gay male private life, as experienced through magazines which were available on nearly every street corner in America – but often kept under their mattresses for fear of being discovered. The exhibition will feature some original illustrations which appeared in the magazines, along with other works of art that have never been seen publically.

In the 1950s, when a large-scale effort sanctioned by the U.S. government was underway to crackdown on what was termed “sexual perversion,” gay life was pushed into the closet. Regardless of those strictures, gay men still needed to explore their own sexuality and true identity.

As a result, a number of magazines became available on drugstore magazine racks and newsstands and were distributed nationwide. Early titles included Grecian Guild Pictorial and Tomorrow’s Man and featured the work of great artists like Tom of Finland and Bob Mizer, both who were recently the subject of a major retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in Los Angeles (November 2, 2013 – January 26, 2014).

“Many of the early magazines pretended to be bodybuilding, strength and health journals,” says exhibition curator Richards. “Sometimes they were called ‘anatomy guides for artists.’ However, most of the men bought these magazines because they were gay. It was nearly their only opportunity to see handsome, well- made, virtually naked men. Buying one of these publications required an act of courage, especially if the small-town drugstore owner knew the buyer and his family most of their lives.”

Although U.S. courts tried to ban sending naked male images through the US mail, by the mid-1960s, the US Supreme Court allowed their distribution. By the late 1960s, with the impact of the “sexual revolution,” rise of feminism and the Stonewall Inn riots, the demand for the magazines mushroomed. Later titles included Blueboy, Torso, Honcho, Mandate, and InTouch. Each issue typically featured masterful illustrations by major artists such as Antonio Lopez, Mel Odom, George Stravrinos, Richard Rosenfeld and others. Many of these artists also made work for mainstream publications such as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, New York Times, Playboy, etc. It was not until the advent of the VCR, then the DVD and ultimately the Internet, that the magazines’ popularity declined and the demand for the wonderful illustrations eroded. “This work has never been collected in one Museum exhibition before,” says Museum Director Hunter O’Hanian. “What Robert Richards has done is pull together important work that played a vital role in people’s lives. This exhibition is important for people who remember the magazines. They will get to see the some of the original illustrations they loved years ago and some recent work. For those in their 20s and 30s, this exhibition will be an opportunity to understand the way that gay men explored their own sexuality and intimacy a generation ago. Everyone will be moved by the gloriousness of art and the impact it had on so many lives. This exhibition expands Leslie-Lohman’s commitment to examining the diversity of the gay and lesbian experience through art.”

The exhibition will include 80 original illustrations, roughly half of which are drawn from the Leslie-Lohman Museum’s vast collection of more than 22,000 objects. Other pieces have been borrowed from private collectors and in some cases from the individual artists. Included in the exhibition will be artwork by : Neel Bate (Blade), Michael Breyette, Michael Broderick, Harry Bush, Jim French (Colt), Oliver Frey, Kevin King (Beau), Michael Kirwan, Touko Laaksonen (Tom of Finland), Antonio Lopez (Antonio), David Martin, Jim McMullin, Donald Merrick (Domino), Kent Neffendorf (Kent), Olaf Odegaard (Olaf), Mel Odom, Dominic Orejudos (Etienne), Benôit Prévot, George Quaintance, George Stravrinos, Rex, Robert W. Richards, Richard Rosenfeld, William Schmelling (Hun) and Frank Webber (Bastille).

Robert W. Richards (curator) Time Out – New York says, “Artist Robert W. Richards, whose signature over-sized black glasses impart him with an artistic air has drawn everything from the Paris Haute Couture to album covers and Broadway and cabaret posters and stars from Al Pacino, Lena Horne, Hugh Jackman, Ann-Margret and most recently Liza Minnelli and Alan Cumming.” But for his many admirers Richards is best known and loved for his skillful and captivating drawings of sexually charged men. Next magazine states “He’s bound to go down in history as one of the gay community’s greatest and most influential artists.”

Now in his fifth decade of drawing Richards is still operating at full tilt, occasionally pausing from his own work to curate exhibitions. At the Leslie-Lohman Museum, Richards has curated: The Gods of Erotica, and A Peter Berlin Retrospective. At the Museum of the Society of Illustrators he curated The Line of Fashion. “If something moves me I’m willing to do the work to share it with people who otherwise might not have an opportunity to see what I’ve been fortunate enough to see.” Richards is currently working on a book of fifty drawings and fifty anecdotes describing his encounters with the famous, the near famous, and the notorious.

Image: Antonio Lopez, Mike Haire 1, 1983. Watercolor and pencil on paper, 23 x 15 in. Courtesy of the Estate of Antonio Lopez and Juan Ramos.

PRESS CONTACT
Jerry Kajpust
Deputy Director for External Relations
jerry@leslielohman.org
212-431-2609

Opening Reception: March 28, 2014 6-8 pm

Leslie-Lohman Museum
26 Wooster Street - New York, NY 10013
Hours
12-6pm, Tuesday-Sunday
12-8pm on Thursday
Closed: Mondays and all major Holidays
For more information, see Calendar
Admission to Leslie-Lohman Museum is Free

stampa

permanent link