This exhibition features selections from the Jack B. Pierson Print Collection that includes works on paper by artists from around the globe. Drawing on Pierson’s experience as a gay man, Political and Personal: Images of Gay Identity sheds light on the important role sexual identity played in forming his collecting habits and highlights the work of several well-known and lesser-known gay artists.
In addition, the works of heterosexual artists are featured, contextualized through their homoerotic subject matter (informed by classical mythology and admiration for male athleticism) or the supportive content of their political messages.
Through highlighting public identity and activism, dissecting historic complexities of the gay male gaze, and considering the pensive and private moments of gay love and attraction, this exhibition captures the multi-dimensional nature of gay identity in the 20th century.
This exhibition was originally scheduled for 2020 but was moved to 2021 due to the Covid-19 closure of the FIA.
Images are available upon request and interviews may be scheduled for in-person or zoom.
Political and Personal: Images of Gay Identity is on view through July 11, 2021.
