Protests - Part 19

Gay in Trumpland

Can art be a protest?  Of course.  These photos are part of a series of 40 photographs by gay photographer Ron Amato called Gay in Trumpland, which he describes as "a visual expression of our community getting pushed back, denied basic protections under the law and being expected to forego the basic human rights of loving and community building."

Reviewer Daniel Larkin wrote: "There is not a single image of Donald Trump in the show. Neither does one find snapshots of witty protest signs. ... What the viewer encounters at this show is far more enigmatic and psychological. ... Photographs of nude men who are veiled with white fabric might not seem obviously connected at first to Trump’s political assault on gay rights. But Amato’s invitation is to ponder hiding and visibility in visual terms. ... Let’s not kid ourselves — the Trump administration is trying to send gay men back into hiding."

When Trump was elected in 2016, Amato said, "‘I became frightened that the civil rights gains the LGBTQ community had fought so hard for, might be in danger of being reversed. I felt helpless. I am first and foremost an artist. I took to the studio to express myself."

"Using Mike Pence’s history of anti-LGBTQ actions as an indication," he continues, "I came to the conclusion that Pence and his ilk didn’t just want to send us back into the closet, they wanted to eradicate homosexuality. I then set out to visually communicate this by not allowing the men in the photographs to connect. To thwart the fulfillment of their sexuality, if you will."

"What Trumpland means to me is the environment he has allowed to happen … he has surrounded himself with people with anti-gay agendas … Jeff Sessions has an anti-gay agenda … Mike Pence has an anti-gay agenda … Betsy DeVos has an anti-gay agenda."

"At the core of our humanity is sexuality. To deny sexuality as an important influence in how we build our lives is to deny who we are as living, thriving human beings. Sexual attraction and its fulfillment is key to living a healthy, productive life. The men in these photographs are depicted as having an impediment to that fulfillment, denying them the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."

Reviewer Daniel Larkin wrote: "Gay in Trumpland 24 [above] is one of the most powerful images in the show, where two gay men embrace in a cocoon created by white fabric. These two men find and create a safe space to embrace. And as the Trump administration is seeking ways to remove space for LGBTQ people, the safe space we can create as gay men with our partners and our lovers is becoming more precious, important, and sacred."

Apart from this protest series, Ron Amato is a prolific photographer of nude males.  You'll see more of his work tomorrow.