Art
Such Delicate Tenderness
Art
From September until December 2019 I had the honour to stay in lovely L.A. as artist in residence the Tom of Finland foundation. Living and working at the house Tom used to work in and where the foundation is based, taught me a lot about the history of this influential artist, but also about the relevance of his work in our present times. Revolution is still necessary, and repression of the LGBTQI community is still something that needs to be addressed. Not only is there still a lot of discrimination and violence in our direct surroundings, but we must also not overlook the importance of being a hopeful example to places where being gay, queer or transgender is still very dangerous or illegal. One of the first things I created was a series of works for the annual art fair held yearly in the gardens of Tom’s house in Echo park.
On the right: 4 drawings of the series ‘You are therefore I am – 2019’ Titles: ‘Dusk’, ‘Sam’, ‘Ruby’ & ‘Fred’. Fountain pen, pencil, gouache and watercolor on paper
It takes a community to start a movement, and this community is very diverse. With my project “You are, therefore I am” I wanted to underline my findings and beliefs, that I felt very strongly during my stay in L.A as a guest of the foundation, that we must look out for one another.
Playfully and very loosely, I used a drawing of Tom as a starting point for my new series that I presented at the Tom of Finland Foundation Arts and Culture festival.
The theme is “our community standards”. Fortunately, my work is rarely censored, probably because of the mixed media and messages in the work, where erotica goes hand in hand with playfulness and opulence. I tried to give this community and the importance of our voice a face in this new series, and I am glad to be able to use my channels to contribute to the queer presence in our society.
On the left: drawing of the series ‘You are therefore I am – 2019’ Title: ‘Paloma’. Fountain pen, pencil, gouache and watercolor on paper
” Such delicate tenderness”
In my work there is always a strange contrast between outspokenness and tenderness, childlike optimism, and provocative aesthetics. I like to combine our world of emotions and senses in strong contrast with bold shapes and graphic notions. During my residency I reflected on different emotional and sexual aspects and layers of the world of the queer and lgbtq community.
I created series of drawings and tapestries, to strengthen and deepen my vision within my erotic art, fed by my personal experiences in Los Angeles.
I tried to touch all the things in my erotic universe that please, inspire, alarm or excite me. I also tried to answer the question where my interest in the erotic art comes from; I realized it is a deeply rooted fascination; that is simply part of my whole emotional, personal and professional being.
The title reflects on the stigma that sexuality has in our western world, which seems to become more prudish every day. Sexuality can be emotional, spiritual and transcendental, not just dirty, offensive or naughty.
On the right: tapestry of the series ‘Such delicate tenderness – 2019’ Title: ‘Family of Penis’ 70cm x 60cm. Silk, cotton, fiberfill.
In past times homosexuals had various very soft nicknames marking them as feminine, while gays nowadays might focus a lot on masculinity themselves. With my projects I strive to embody fluidity, softness and playfulness, instead of thinking too much in stereotypes. Let’s get tender!
For my final exhibition I created several new series of works next to a large number of single drawings and textiles.
– “Pink boys”, a series of 26 pink nudes in fountain pen and water color on collected ephemera
– “You are, therefore I am”, a series about the importance of community and safe space, resulted in 30 portraits based loosely on a drawing by Tom of Finland depicting a man with a leather hat. Series of 30 unique drawings, different sizes. Fountain pen, pencil, gouache and watercolor on paper
– “Guidelines for responsible gay living” is a series of eight tapestries in digital print on cotton and wool embroidery.
On the left: Drawing of the series ‘Such delicate tenderness – 2019’ Title: ‘Pot of Gold’ 29,5 x 21 cm. Watercolor, crayon, pencil and fountainpen on paper
1. Title: ‘Be Kind and horny’ 2019 Fountainpen and pencil on paper, 33 x 25cm
2. Title: ‘Can I play’ 2019 Watercolor and fountain pen on paper, 34 x 23,5cm
3. Title: ‘Pink boys 1962’ 2019 Watercolor and fountain pen on paper, 25.4 x 14cm
4. Title: ‘Bas Nude’ 2019 Watercolor and fountain pen on paper, 21.5 x 14.2cm
5. Title: ‘Pink boys 104’ 2019 Watercolor and fountain pen on paper, 23 x 15.1cm
6. Title: ‘Pink boys 37’ 2019 Watercolor and fountain pen on paper, 30.6 x 19.3cm
