AxD Gallery has joined forces with Philadelphia QFest to present “queerArt?,” a group exhibition featuring a wide range of works, mediums and styles from LGBTQ artists.
For local artist Susan DiPronio, the exhibition is an opportunity to put something out there other than the performances for which she’s known.
“For me, it’s really important because it will be the first time people will see what I write combined with the photographs. I otherwise do plays and performances and standup. But I’ve never really, until this past year, shown people what I write about these photographs. For me, it’s taking a big risk. This is a big opportunity for people who I’ve known for millions of years and have not seen my work. They haven’t gone to the Fringe Festival or the First Person Arts Story Slam. I’m pretty excited about that, but I’m also nervous.”
Even though DiPronio is relatively new to displaying her photographs, she is not new to photography.
“I’ve always taken photographs but mainly I’m a writer. I write autobiographical lyrical verse. My show was in the Fringe Festival last year and I always have something going on.”
DiPronio’s work often combines media — visual, written and performance, with a focus on the written and visual.
“I like to combine the two,” she said. “When I was a little kid, I always took photographs and I always wrote. It’s difficult for me to separate the visual from the text. So when you see my photographs, they have poems; some of them were written first, but most of them were influenced by the photographs.”
Another photographer in the exhibition is J.D. Dragan, whose depictions of the male physique are featured in popular calendars and art galleries alike.
He said the images the committee selected for the AxD exhibition have a unifying theme, which may have been intentional.
“Three of the four shots that they chose are rear nudes. There are no frontal nudes. I don’t know if it was intentional or accidental. When I submit to show, I submit a great variety of poses and attitudes that the models might present themselves in. I’m very open to people viewing what they or what their audience might feel comfortable viewing. The choice of rear shots could have been quite accidental. It could have been the ones they like the best.”
Other mediums represented at “queerArt?” include a drawing by Israel-born artist Doron Langberg, who studied art at University of Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts.
While most artists featured have a number of works on display, Langberg said he’ll only have one piece in the exhibition.
“My work is very large. It’s a 9-by-7-foot drawing with a lot of acrylic, ink, graphite and stuff like that. I categorize them as drawings, but basically they’re works on paper.”
He added that his piece might require a bit of time and effort for people to fully appreciate it.
“My work is very much figurative. All the images are taken from video I make, they’re sex videos. From those videos, I take images and composite them with other images, specifically ones that show an interior image, and put them all together with different references like patterns. The piece in the show has a lot of nature elements like foliage and water ripples. For me, the sheer amount of visual information is about creating this extremely enticing experience that you as a viewer will be very attracted to. You look at the piece and the sexual narrative reveals itself very slowly, almost creating this forced empathy toward something people wouldn’t empathize with.”
Given his subject matter, Langberg appreciates how much exhibitions like “queerArt?” give him an opportunity to show people his work.
“A lot of times, sexual and homosexual subject matter kind of causes a lot of issues for me in terms of showing my work. Having a space like that really is much more accepting of the subject matter. It’s a good opportunity to show work that is explicit but also in the right context for that kind of work.”
Dragan said that exhibitions such as “queerArt?” are a boon for LGBT artists.
“I think that the more opportunities that local artists have to be seen by the gay community and the community in general, the better it is for all of us. I think the more we’re out there in front of everybody and visible, the better it is for our own standing in the community.”
The “queerArt?” exhibition runs through Aug. 7 at AxD Gallery, 265 S. 10th St. For more information, visit www.a-x-d.com or call (215) 627-6250.
Larry Nichols can be reached at [email protected].