It's Friday, reader. You know what that means - it's Queerty ReBUTTal time! Yay!
You guys did super with the comments. Really. Just super - lisp and all. While we have plenty of thoughts on your thoughts on our thoughts, we're switching it up these week. As you're well aware, we've just kicked off The Style Issue.
Before things go too far, however, we'd like to have a brief look back on some of our other issues and some of the bits that didn't make it. Take a look at some unpublished excerpts, after the jump.
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We were having a lovely electronic chat with our artist friend, Ryan Greene, the other day and we asked him to recommend an artist for you, our darling readers. As you saw in The Narcissist Issue, Greene's poised to become one of the great artists of his generation, thus when he suggested Mathew Cerletty, we hopped on over to Cerletty's site faster than you can say art-fag.
Rather than tell you what we think of the 26-year old Wisconsin born, New York based figurative painter, we're going to post a few of our favorites, as well as the link to Cerletty's site, and let you draw your own conclusions. (Get it, draw. Shit, we can't believe the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association didn't even give us an honorable mention!)
Oh, and for those of you over in England between October 6th and November 4th, swing by the Royal Academy of Arts to see Cerletty's work in the group show, USA Today.
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It’s been a day of finales here at Queerty. First Gay Speak closes shop and now we present the final installment of The Narcissist Issue.
We find it appropriate to end with a piece on dancer Miguel Gutierrez, whose self-referential works draw from a well of universal emotions. So, hop to it and plunge into the jump to see why Gutierrez thinks that dance is more than just a performance, how the viewer should leave his performances with more than just memories, and why he just can’t stop moving.
Next month we’re going to scare the pants off you with The Totally Frightful Issue, so keep those peepers peeled, Paco!
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As meticulous readers of Queerty, you know that Ari Gold, one of the many artists featured in The Narcissist Issue, has signed on to represent I Line Cosmetics. Founded by a charming man make-up artist by the name of Irwin Rappaport, the line will soon be available for all the enjoy.
In conjunction with our interview with Ari, we did a little sampling of the products. While we spend most of our time unkempt in dirty clothes, when we take the odd shower and actually put a little effort into our appearance, we take our product very seriously. Find out what we thought of the various samples sent our way, after the jump.
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For this installment of The Narcissist Issue, we turn our eyes to Ari Gold, a gay singer whose lungs are only matched by his looks. We must mention that the interview originally took place via telephone, but the technological demons shat all over us, so we had to redo it via electronic mail. Our deep apologies to Mr. Gold who, we admit, was far more eloquent that we expected. Next time you're in town, Ari, drinks are on us.
After the jump read what he has to say about the relationship between gay and mainstream media, how we need to stop with all the gay-on-gay hate, and why it's alright to be narcissistic.
(Oh, and we've also included Gold's video for "Wave of You," which was recently named the third sexiest video of all time by Logo! See? We do love you.)
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Out twenty-three year-old, singer/songwriter, Chris Garneau ditched his Broadway dreams in favor of supporting of his own album of originals, Music for Tourists.
Produced by Duncan Sheik, Music is a quiet record of small epiphanies performed on not much more than a piano and sung in Garneau’s unmistakable, intimate tenor. With the record on its way, a fall tour, and an unofficial record release party at Joe’s Pub in New York City, on October 13th, Garneau’s got no regrets.
After the jump, Garneau sits down with freelance writer, Ryan Doyle to discuss what it means to be a gay artist with more to sing about than being gay, how he's more than just a pretty face, and the secret behind never falling out of love.
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Remember our interview with Alan Klein and Ron Goldberg, two early members of ACT UP? No? Well, get with it and click here.
For those of you who are up-to-date, here's part two, in which the boys discuss the appropriation of activism by the media, pharmaceutical greed, and the rise - and unfortunate results - of professionalism in the movement.
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If there’s one adversary gays must not ignore, it’s stagnation: the paralysis of motion and progression. With new queer headlines daily, it may seem that we’re in no threat of slowing down, but visibility and advancement are not necessarily the same thing. That’s one thing gay filmmaker Matt Wolf (seen here in a picture we lifted from his website. If you think he's a cute kid, you should see him now!) knows all too well.
Considering the political undertones of his short films, it comes as no surprise that Wolf once considered a career in politics. Coming out at the tender age of 14, Wolf threw himself into gay activism in his hometown of San Jose, CA, where he joined the burgeoning Gay-Straight Alliance Movement and pushed for anti-discrimination law to further the LGBT cause. It wasn’t until a few years later that he had another sort of coming out. “In high school, I decided that I didn’t want to work in politics. I wanted to be an artist.”
With a scholarship to New York University, Wolf packed up and headed east, where his activist roots and artistic dreams coalesced into something new entirely: the fictional documentary. Merging actual people and fabricated characters, Wolf's movies explore gay issues to shed light on our at times unsettling reality.
Join us after the jump as we examine Wolf’s earlier works and learn that while his media stays the same, his ideas evolve as fast as the world changes.
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In an earlier installment of The Narcissist Issue, we relayed the story of Narcissus: the gorgeous lad whose self-love led to eternal incarceration in his own reflection. Pretty scary, but we must remember that not all reflections bring such nasty consequences.
As the future rises up at horrifying speeds, and the past seems to disintegrate in the blink of an eye, many people forget to take the time to look back. In our opinion, it's impossible to forge a viable gay equality without first reflecting on the people and organizations that came paved the way.
To this end, we sat down with Alan Klein and Ron Goldberg, two of the earliest members of the AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power (ACT UP). Through mass demonstrations and seemingly-spontaneous zaps, ACT UP successfully brought AIDS to national attention, thus clearing a path for understanding, progress and a future as scary as it is hopeful.
In part one of a two piece interview, Klein and Goldberg talk about their early days as activists, using the media to get their message out, and how fighting the system takes its toll.
Learn a little somethin' somethin', after the jump…
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The first of its kind, HX Magazine paved the way for a new generation of gay publishing. As gay communities pulled themselves from the wreckage of the first wave of AIDS, HX stepped into the scene to breath new life into New York City. Like a breath of fresh air, the magazine held a mirror to the gay city to breath new life into club life and the sex scene.
This month marks the 15th anniversary of the glossy fag rag. As it marks the happy occasion, HX marches forward to new horizons by starting a Philadelphia edition. If you're not lucky enough to live in New York or Phillie, never fear, we hear the company's looking to expand for national domination.
For this installment of The Narcissist Issue, we sat down with HX founder Matthew Bank in his spacious Chelsea office to chat about the magazine’s humble origins, the evolution of New York’s nightlife, how that modern day narcissist: the Chelsea boy, and why the so-called post-gay movement may be just a dream.
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While it may be tempting to dismiss queer British photographer Stuart Sandford as nothing more than another kid with a camera, a closer look finds that Sandford’s images successfully interlock the snapshot aesthetic with more thoughtful subjectivity. The result is a delicate, yet empowered portrayal that eschews piteousness in favor of a more light-hearted, exhilarating self.
Here, Sandford chats with Queerty about the importance of fantasy, healthy self-love, and why we need more masculine experimentation.
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If you've be keeping up, last week we unveiled the first installment of The Narcissist Issue. While some of you out there have griped about our unorthodox - and perhaps unflattering - use of the word "narcissist," we implore you: wait until all is said and done before jumping down our throats. (That's the first and last time you'll hear us say such a thing.)
Sure, we know that most of you out there equate narcissism solely with self-obsession, but we're looking to expand that definition. No, we don't mean self-esteem. We mean narcissism - a self-awareness that involves reflection, emulation, and, yes, a bit of obsession.
We sort of blew our load all at once last week, but this week we're going to prolong the magic a bit. First up, we're heading over the England to catch up with photographer Stuart Sandford and chat about his gorgeous, thoughtful and, yes, sexy work.
And, of course, if you missed last week's articles, click on the link below and experience the glory. You'll thank us later.
Here's another look at dandyism, the more affable younger brother of narcissism.
Those boys with one eye on the mirror and the other on you play a large role in the work of American painter, Ryan Greene, whose 40 x 50” oil paintings illustrate the unspoken “decisive ambiguity” of the movement itself while also examining class issues.
In an email interview from Tunis – where he says the art scene “is limited to me teaching bored ambassador’s wives to pain, and schlocky paintings of camels and palm trees” – Greene proves that, contrary to popular belief, not all artists are narcissists.
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Given Narcissus' origins, it's only fitting we take a little trip over to Greece. Above, you see Michelangelo's depiction of Narcissus mere moments from being trapped in the myth that gave rise to this issue. But, are all Greek men so self-obsessed? In this piece, freelance writer Jimmy Im says yes, and rightfully so. Men in Mykonos may love themselves and their bodies, but Im doesn't think that's necessarily bad. Find out why, after the jump.
(Update: An astute reader pointed out that the picture is not, in fact, by the famous Michelangelo, but was composed by Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio, who's known just as Caravaggio. Good looking out.)
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When Narcissus looked in that pond, he saw a work of art. It's only natural, then, that we take a look at actual works of art. After the jump, Interview Magazine's assistant editor, Justin Conner, takes a look at narcissism in art and finds its socialite younger brother: the dandy.
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