In a contemporary lens, queerness and art are intertwined. People like Keith Haring, Andy Warhol, Kehinde Wiley, Frida Kahlo, and many others come to mind. But those artists aren’t scratching the surface of the wide range of artistic creations and inspirations that have been glamourized throughout centuries. Going back to the time of the great masters, one of the most famous names in art and history was famous in his time, not just for his unmatched artistic ability, but for his blatant queerness. Leonardo da Vinci was well known by his contemporaries for his love affair with his long-time apprentice, Giacomo Caprotti. However, queer art, especially art from a non-contemporary period, does have to be made by queer people mainly. Just as certain queer pop-culture ‘“icons” are not queer themselves, their work and the things they produce transcend labels and find a deeper meaning to those who see themselves in such work, much like the now queer icon, The Boy with a Fruit Basket, by Caravaggio, is now an image closely related to the typical “male gayness” that is portrayed in many forms of media.
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ID: 'Mountain Ranges from Yegen, Andalusia' by Dora Carrington, c.1924.
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As time passes and art forms advance, more and more people become artists. Such a title wasn’t reserved for the most privileged, and as that happened, the blending of culture and different life stories began to influence the art world. Taking a large leap, the modern art movements, not to be confused with the art of today, contemporary art, saw a massive increase of outwardly queer artists—modern artists like Frida Kahlo, Dora Carrington, Gwen John, and many, many more. While accepted within many artistic social circles, society at large still did not accept queer culture, while they loved the work that many queer artists produced. This is why artists like Frida Kahlo, Gwen John, and Dora Carrington decided to do something about it. They expressed queer elements in their works while hiding it in plain sight. Hiding acts of queer love or disguising breasts as mountains or hills, these artists went to great lengths to show those “in the know” that there were others like them. It wasn’t about depicting queerness; it was a way to communicate with others and show others that they are not alone. Such is the case for many different types of artists; they use their medium to express to others who they are while letting those who are similar know that they aren’t alone.
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ID: 'Heart of Heads' by Keith Haring, 1989.
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Today’s art scene differs greatly from 20-30 years ago. With the exponential acceptance of LGBTQ+ people and the art world being at the forefront of the battle for queer rights, there is no more need for queer people to hide who they are in their art. But has it gotten too much? While there could never be too much queer art, it seems that specific dealers/buyers, those who ultimately control what sells and what doesn’t, pigeonhole many queer artists to sticking only to queer subjects, as if once you identify as queer, there is no more to you. It has gone to a point coming from the oppression of queer people in art, now to the mass production of queer art, that is all but a holistic view of what it means to be queer in the 21st century. It is clear that the label-locking of queer people, and all people, will not be sustainable in the coming years, and people continue to diversify as social media and the world as a whole grows.
By Ian Ziegler (he/him)
