Andy Menzel Individual issue study: Sexuality and Art

 Sexuality and Art

Sexuality in art

              For my issue study I wanted to really do something that was different and something that has popped up quite a lot and changed throughout history. Something that everyone can relate to on one level or another and have probably seen its effects on the world in one way or another, that being sexuality and its influence in and around art. We start to really see examples of sexuality and the human body around the time of ancient Greece and into the renaissance. Michelangelo’s “David” for example was carved completely nude and throughout the years it was covered up because people saw its nudity as something shameful and something to be hidden. (also doesn’t help that Davids like 17ft tall) This is something that we continue to see throughout the years being explored, as many of the greatest examples of sculpture are indeed nude. There's something captivating and primal about the human form. From the sinuous muscles and veins down to the powerful and strong thighs and sumptuous rear. One of the first notable pieces of Greek art that really explores sexuality is of course Hermaphroditus from Early Greece. The child of God Hermes and the Goddess Aphrodite, this individual possesses both male and female reproductive organs. But this is really the first major non-traditional example of sexuality in important art in history. This is especially important because early humans thought of the world in a binary way and if you study biology, you will quickly learn that that is not the case, as nothing in our world is a binary system and its interesting to see some artists start to notice this even thousands of years ago. Eventually we get to statues of two male lovers Achilles and Patroclus. While not usually depicted explicitly as lovers, these two are shown to have had a very close relationship not only in Greek art but in other media as well such as the Illiad and even some of Shakespeare’s plays.

Harmodius and Aristogeiton, image courtesy of Miguel Hermoso Cuesta via Wikipedia

Contributor, Academy. “Depictions of Queer Art throughout History.” Academy of Art University, Academy of Art, 5 June 2023, www.academyart.edu/about-us/news/depictions-of-queer-art-throughout-history/.

              Another great example of gay art in Greece is of Harmodius and his lover Aristogeiton. These two are depicted in the nude like many others and they are some of the first statues to not depict gods but rather mortal heroes (Academy contributor, 2020). Due to the general stigma against same sex relationship, many artists had to hide the explicitly sexual gestures that we commonly would expect to see in a couple. Thus, there’s not really any tight close bodies, kissing, things like that, that really tell the audience its explicitly a sexual relationship. Although modern art historians have done a good job of unearthing and decoding these hidden messages. This particular piece definitely uses subtle gestures as mentioned such as Harmodius reaching out a piece of draped clothing to his lover, again its subtle in its intentions but it gets the point across and helps convey a message. When looking at these pieces of art one often wonders just why same sex relationships were so taboo and why it took so long to become normalized, especially since the Greeks were known for studying the world around them and same sex relationships are not exclusively a human thing. The biggest reason simply seems to be powerful influences such as religion as well as powerful figures at that time (many of whom were also religious). Religion has affected many arts, and it has interwoven itself into sexuality and what is deemed acceptable and taboo. 

              Going forward a few centuries a female Norwegian artist named Marie Hoeg became well known for her work featuring her same sex lover. Hoeg and her partner would dress up in traditionally male clothing and even do things that were traditionally deemed “male only” such as smoking. At the time it was really a big and bold statement of standing against the culture. Throughout the 1950s to 60s we see of course woman’s suffrage and their fight for rights, not only to vote and such but also to make art and make it about their bodies. Around this time and especially going into the 80s and 90s we see more and more sexual art and less stigma around it. Many art schools begin offering nude figure drawing classes, something that still goes on today (for good reason, there’s a lot to be gained by drawing nude figures). We see a shift in the culture, something that many people often take for granted. “Modern society was politically founded by men and so it’s not surprising that it was created to accommodate and favor the male gender” ( Nuno 2016, 78). Another powerful thing that must be taken into consideration when one talks about rat and sexuality is of course sexism. Obviously, sexism plays a part in art and it has for millennia. Most of the great artists throughout history such as Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Picasso and etc. were of course men. Men not only made the rules of art but also what qualifies as good art and even today this is still a problem in some areas, especially if you’re a woman of color. Nochlin in her book goes on to state that many male artists don’t write about a problem in art because they have a lot of power, but also because its just something that they don’t believe exists and they’re not going to write about a nonexistent problem” (Nuno 2016, 78) Going forward there’s definitely work to do to improve but its also reassuring seeing the progress society has made and the ways art has changed and grown along with our culture and ever evolving sexuality. After all what’s considered taboo sexually now wasn’t necessarily considered sexual taboo four hundred years ago and it will probably be different tin a hundred years from now as we become better and better.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References (works Cited)

The Body in Art | Moma, www.moma.org/collection/terms/investigating-identity/the-body-in-art. Accessed 10 Oct. 2023.

Contributor, Academy. “Depictions of Queer Art throughout History.” Academy of Art University, Academy of Art, 5 June 2023, www.academyart.edu/about-us/news/depictions-of-queer-art-throughout-history/.

Nuno, Debbie. “Sexism in Art: From the Fundamentals to Art Critiques.” Sexism in Art: From the Fundamentals to Art Critique, CSUSB ScholarWorks, 2016, scholarworks.lib.csusb.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1010&context=art-history-papers.

Pollock, Griselda. “Women, Art, and Art History: Gender and Feminist Analyses.” Obo, Oxford Bibliographies, www.oxfordbibliographies.com/abstract/document/obo-9780199920105/obo-9780199920105-0034.xml. Accessed 10 Oct. 2023.