Magnus Herschfeld Double Page Spread

The new post is about the world’s first sexologist, a homosexual man, first to fight for the rights of all sexual minorities including the transgendered. The double page spread is the latest in the series I hope to become a book, The LGBTQ Pictionary. I create the artwork and write about Magnus Hirschfeld at a time when we in the USA are in a precarious position similar to that of Herschfeld’s Weimar Republic as the Nazi Party came into power.

This double page spread is the 5th in the series. When I have eight I plan on sending them off to LGBTQ organizations with a proposal to publish the book of fifty words and illustrations as a way to generate funds for the organization through an art exhibition about the book and sales of the book.

“Faggot” - Double Page Spread for the LGBTQ Pictionary

The notion that the term "faggot" originates with the English, faggot, a bundle of sticks is likely. However, the word is not associated with burning homosexuals alive at the stake. The term does denote various sized and kinds of bundles of sticks, and these were standardized in 1474 by ordinance.* Alternatively the word has been used to describe a cigarette (British), and a kind of sausage meatball, also British.

The first recorded use of faggot or fag to denote a homosexual man in the USA took place in 1914, and, common use of the term faggot and the shortened version, fag to denote homosexual men and women is found by 1921. These terns are extremely pejorative though by the late 1970’s the LGBT community was actively reacquiring such derogatory terms to be used in a positive prideful manor. Fag and faggot have gradually fallen out of use. Instead, the (pejorative) “that's so gay” became more common during the 1980's. Cultural and social processes have gradually removed the stigma attached to "gay" as well. In the second decade of the 21st Century "gay" is understood as a more positive way of referring to homosexual men and/or women.

In this mixed media distressed painting I was expressing these historical aspects, cultural and social trends. The painting includes references to the centuries old “Fag” family name, to faggot, a bundle of sticks, and to cigarette as fag. It contains images of late 19th century and early 20th century sepia photos of male couples, as well as text about the word and its various significations buried in the layers of paint.*1 The text in the double page spread is different from and more detailed than the text in this blog.

Notes

*Link to details about these measurements

*1 I obtained many of the sepia images from the Website, Homo History and kept a careful log and record of these.

The Newest Art Card Is Serenity

Card, side 1

Card, side 2

During the Trump presidency discord, bad behavior and incivility have reached fever pitch though as a culture we have been trending in that direction for decades. I believe with great certainty that unless many of us act individually to counteract the cultural and social trend our democracy is doomed to go down in social and political anarchy. Because of that belief I began making the Art Cards as my individual effort to affect change in 2013. I design the cards and have them printed in batches of 250 each so that I can give them to random persons, sometimes face to face, other times anonymously. I also put them in public spaces where they can be picked up or ignored. I am not making the cards to be revolutionary because that would be foolish. I don’t show them in the traditional style of the Art World, for sale in art galleries. Instead they are meant to be gifts made to others. I know that the vast majority of the cards end up lost or trashed and I also know that this effort does little or nothing to cause change. But, I hope that the gift of these cards might inspire a few people here and there over time to join in the effort to create peace, love, joy, harmony, and serenity through their own kind efforts toward others. At the same time I understand my hope to be a Metamodern trope that goes just a touch beyond postmodern irony. *

I titled the two sides of the card side 1 and side 2 because neither side takes priority over the other. One is based on a photograph I took in 2010. The other is also photographic, but I took the photo of a section of sky in one of the seascape pastels I've created during the past 20 years. The typography, orange and yellow colors added to the pastel image, and photos of the birds are used to establish unity between the two sides of the card. In fact I have used more photography in this card than in each of the other five cards, and I'm pleased with the result.

Note

• Art during the 20th and 21st century is thought by artists, theorist and art critics to fit into three periods, modern, postmodern and metamodern. Metamodern is the most recent of these and readers can discover something about it at the following location, http://www.metamodernism.com/.

Transwoman: Double Page Spread

I’m working on the proposal for a book based on the LGBTQ Pictionary. This new double page spread is only the third of ten that includes the front and back covers of the book. Once Again I have 3 possible versions of this double page spread with type indication where future text will be. I have my preference but I will not say which one until I have some from friends on Facebook because I’m curious to see how the opinions compare to mine.

A.

Interestingly, responses to the “Transman” double page spread were evenly divided between choices “B” and “C.” Because of those responses I will make a simple change to choice “C” in order to make it work a bit more like “B” visually, that is to make the area of type slightly larger in order to make the page fit the ancient Greek golden mean (proportion 8 to 1). In conclusion, viewer opinion helped me come to the best possible solution.

Please write your choice, "A," "B" or "C" on my post in Facebook.

B.

C.

Gender Variant and Trans Woman Paintings Finished

At Last, they are done!

I took one day ignoring all other problems and issues to finish both paintings. Now I move on to producing more double page spreads for a possible book based on the LGBTQ Pictionary.

Below are 3 examples of a page from the book. The type is indicated.  I make indicated type by reversing it and flipping it upside down.  It is not the actual text. I like example "C" with the small square of type in the center of the page, but I hope to get some votes from friends on Facebook as to which they like best.

A

B

C

Transgender - Gender Variant Pronouns

In 70’s I am increasingly forgetful. During work on this set of layers in the 6” square window transparency I forgot to make a layer of oil to separate new paint from the dechirage and paint below. When the layer dried and I distressed the paint it came off of the exposed paint below, but not the laminated layer of dechirage paper in the square. In order to make the mistake work, I took a new photo and put it into Adobe Photoshop. Printed the image, and tore it apart, finally laminating some of the torn pieces back into the 6” central window. I am so pleased with the result! It is better than if my memory had functioned properly.

I plan another smaller square within the 6” square. And that square will have my makeshift definition of gender variant pronouns. That may finish this mixed media distressed painting - or not. I won’t know until I see the artwork with the smaller square added.

Transwoman: Not Finished As Planned

I tried to go beyond this step with more glitter stripes around other areas in the mixed media distressed painting, but so far I haven’t been successful with these. I always try shapes, photos and buried text in different locations in Adobe Photoshop before gluing the actual physical things in place and or painting over them and distressing the paint. I experiment with locations until everything seems to be absolutely correct visually. After 2 hours of deliberation the image has the definition added to the central 2-inch square plus the glitter box surrounding it. I will add more glitter stripes after I sleep on it tonight. Once the subconscious has had time to ruminate I’m sure the solution to final glitter stripes location will happen on the conscious level.

Gender Variant: Stage 3

The final artwork in the series of 4 mixed media distressed paintings about transgendered people delves into language and “gender nonconformity.” The painting has 12 layers at this stage, and will have at least 4 more over the entire surface after which I will be working on smaller segments of the surface to completion. There is no way to know what the painting will look like when finished because of the unpredictable nature of this process, though I do use some line, color and shape toward the end of the process to superimpose order onto the accidental nature of the work. The painting is done mostly in blues, red and pink at this stage because pink and blue are the colors of the transgender flag.

Can you find the miss spelled words? I am the worlds worst speller, and I must check everything several times. Also, as I age my spelling is deteriorating. I missed 2 in this stage. Since it will be painted over and distressed I am not overly distressed (pun intended) about them because they will probably be hidden. However, I best be more careful in the next stage of the work.

Trans Woman Heroes: Next to Final State

I am overcome with distress (pun intended)

As I create these mixed media distressed partially digital art works I’ve learned so much about the heroism of trans people and their fight for recognition. I learned that they are no different from the rest of us, with that one small exception; they are born in the wrong body. By way of example, black trans woman Lucy Hicks Anderson, pictured in the top of “Trans Woman” was tried for marrying her soldier boy friend. They were taken to court, fought the US government over her trans status, and were convicted of perjury and fraud by Federal courts. They were both imprisoned. She died at age 68 in 1954 still living her life as a woman. She was a trans woman hero as were all the other women pictured in the painting.

About Process

In the final steps of this painting I will make a small 2” square centered within the larger distressed pale blue square. This smaller square will include the “Trans Woman” headline. However, I’m not sure of the colors I will use, nor how or whether I will distress the definition and the text in the square. Perhaps that little square will contain 2 or more layers of digitized torn paper sandwiched between distressed layers of paint, and laminated into the montage. Also, there will be torn stripes of actual glitter enhanced photographed glitter laminated around and through portions of the entire painting. These are process questions and I will make decisions as I continue my work. I do know that the end of this process is in sight.