Nancy Boy," a dismissive term for an effeminate young man or boy, harkens back to a time of the stiffest of upper lips, when men who were less than "manly" often paid the price in ridicule and shame. Exploring a quirky, carefully defined territory which raises questions about gender identification, Richmond Art Center Guest Curator Nancy Mizuno Elliot invited eight male artists, whose work has either been influenced by feminism, or who choose to work with "feminine" materials, to participate in her provocatively titled exhibition Nancy Boy. Clearly, if the eight artists participating in the show share one single quality, it is their total lack of "butchness," and much of the work on view draws energy from subverting macho conventions.
wood, paint, powder coat,
29” x 22-1/2” x 6-1/2”
96” x 18” x 8”
11” x 8’ x 5’, at the Richmond Art Center
Sewing, and fiber art, naturally put in a strong showing. We find quilted covers for tools, such as the engaging "Drill Cozy" presented by Brian Gangelhoff. A traditional quilting pattern, using triangles of white and blue floral fabric, wraps an electric drill, recognizable solely by its familiar form and protruding cord. He also includes a quilted "Hand Saw Cozy;" his "Router Cozy" and "Circular Saw Cozy" are done in needlepoint. Seth Koen presents an assortment of fiber constructions, generally in pink and red, using the repeated combination of spheres, circles, and drooping cords. These have some of the anthropomorphic, sexual energy of Eva Hesse's sculptures, although they lack the emotional intensity of Hesse. Koen's use of soft, "feminine" materials becomes a minor concern as the formal aspects of shape and color seem to motivate the work. In "Hats #2" red discs about one and one half feet in diameter hang perhaps two feet apart, near the ceiling, crocheted tubes drape down to the floor with pink cup shapes at the ends. At the opening reception, a young boy impishly wore one on his head; a later discussion with the artist confirmed his intention for this work to be interactive.
Matthew Gerring presents an assortment of pieces incorporating dense "polyester machine embroidery" and camping gear - gear which Gerring says allows "a person to 'get back to nature' while wrapped in state of the art petroleum by-products." His "Tent" is lined with the dense, hallucinatory stitching of imagery relating to spiritual philosophy, while "Sleeping Bag," slightly less ornate, reveals the outline of a body, suggesting a departed inhabitant. Lungs, heart, stomach, and other organs are outlined in red, orange, yellow, and green, while the outer areas are traced in blues and purples, suggesting an aura. In these and other works, Gerring uses the colored thread largely as a drawing tool.
Boys being boys, their interpretation of feminine materials and aesthetics naturally extends to include numerous references to phallic imagery, guns, and bullets. In Francis McIlveen's "Buffet of Pistols" seven throbbing, erogenous pistols are molded of lumpy, curving ceramic; these are glazed in cotton-candy pinks, and presented on an upholstered table where padded, poofy, pink silk gently cradles them. One might consider this work in the context, say, of Judy Chicago's "Dinner Party;" a relationship to feminism may thus emerge.
