By Jennifer Murray
Daily Bruin Contributor
At long last, a collection has come to campus that will
challenge negative stereotypes of the gay and lesbian
community.
"Interpreting The Coming Out Struggle," the exhibit currently
showing at the Kerckhoff Art Gallery, features a diverse selection
of artwork created by local lesbian artists. The show is the first
in a series of on-campus events sponsored by the Gay and Lesbian
Association(GALA) in support of "Coming Out Week," Oct. 6-13.
According to Darnell Grisby, co-chairperson of GALA, the
intention behind the exhibit is "to educate the entire student body
about issues that affect the population.
"I hope that everyone, regardless of their sexual orientation,
plans to see the exhibit while it is being showcased," he says.
"It’s one of the unique opportunities that university students are
presented with as far as trying to delve into things that they
might not necessarily be familiar with."
The exhibit, to be followed by a rally in Westwood Plaza on
Tuesday, as well as several other celebratory activities, certainly
offers a more intimate look at the issues facing the gay and
lesbian community at present.
Above all else, "Interpreting The Coming Out Struggle" is a
complex amalgam of gay and lesbian perspectives rendered through a
variety of artistic media.
Janet Nicholson, a 32-year-old Los Angeles artist, salvages a
variety of "found objects" and integrates them with an exhilarating
array of colors on canvas, illustration board and paper in order to
achieve her "Afro-centric … more primitive style." Nicholson
stresses that her selections of pigment have no deliberate racial
implications. Rather, she paints "the aura of a person, not
necessarily their natural skin tone."
Like Nicholson, photographer Alex Zaphiris showcases her images
in a rather unconventional manner. Zaphiris presents approximately
20 photographs of various gay pride events that she has
participated in over the course of the last several months.
"Thematically, the project has to do with how lesbian identity is
conveyed through personal aesthetics," Zaphiris says. "It all kind
of deals with how we use words and pictures, tattoos, piercing,
T-shirts and buttons to tell the story of who we are, what we want,
and where we stand."
The photographs are mounted on large slats of wood which have
been washed with the rainbow colors of the Gay Pride flag. Zaphiris
superimposes fragments of original text on the wood "frames" in an
attempt to enrich communication with her audience.
In addition to the refreshing use of mixed media, perhaps what
makes "Interpreting The Coming Out Struggle" so special is the fact
that all of the artists involved embrace the opportunity to convey
a complicated message regarding gay and lesbian life to the viewer.
There appears to be a common understanding among the participants
that their creative intentions risk being misunderstood in the
interpretative process, yet this does not deter them from entering
into a powerful dialogue with the audience.
In fact, both Janet Nicholson and Alex Zaphiris engage informed
social and political ideologies in their art as a means of
confronting the dilemmas that are unique to gay and lesbian
artists. Nicholson and Zaphiris agree that distinguishing the gay
and lesbian experience from any other is crucial to the development
of a confident and proud homosexual community. Simultaneously, both
artists acknowledge that expressing themselves on a universal level
as well as a homosexual one remains a fundamental criterion of
their work.
Nicholson’s thematic focus revolves around the more personal
moments of gay and lesbian life. In her piece entitled "Touching My
Love," she depicts a woman in the midst of a meditative moment.
Nicholson says of the piece, "It may not matter to someone that’s
admiring the art whether she is a lesbian, but it’s important to me
to put it out there that I know that’s what she is."
In another of Nicholson’s pieces, "The Number Four," two women
sleep side by side as the peaceful light of dawn enters their
private space. A dreamy atmosphere pervades the work and the female
figures certainly appear to be intimate with one another. Nicholson
explains how such a painting serves to perpetuate a positive
lesbian profile: "I think it’s important that we put our images out
as gays and lesbians, though the images and things you see are
pretty much like any other art … I think it brings attention to
our voice and our place in society."
Zaphiris is a bit more radical in her approach to photography.
She admits that her involvement in and responsibility to the gay
and lesbian community is her primary artistic commitment, and that
she does indeed keep a specific political agenda in mind while she
creates.
"My philosophy about the art of it is also similar to my
philosophy about the politics of it," Zaphiris says. "I feel very
strongly that each group that experiences itself as marginalized as
a part of the political process, needs to have time to itself …
There is a need for that and a place for that, culturally and
politically.
"At the same time, the work is also about being a bridge," she
explains. "If the work isn’t a bridge then it’s only acting on one
level and it’s not being as effective as it could be. If it’s
something that has meaning for me then it’s going to have meaning
for other people."
Zaphiris’ images of topless women celebrating their choices and
convictions while marching in front of the Treasury Building in
Washington D.C. certainly resonate with a proud feeling of unity
and strength. She hopes that the viewer, whatever his/her sexual
orientation may be, will empathize with the need to belong and the
desire to be loved that is conveyed within the context of these
pieces.
Nicholson articulates the feelings behind "Interpreting The
Coming Out Struggle" when she says, "Ultimately, we are the same.
It’s just that our expressions are different, and that’s what we
have to come to appreciate about each other." Indeed, appreciating
differences while still emphasizing similarities is precisely what
the exhibit is all about.
ART: "Interpreting The Coming Out Struggle"
will be at Kerckhoff Art Gallery through Oct. 18.