Through the Eyes of the Minotaur

Yesterday I somehow tapped into a European homoerotic Facebook page that suddenly sent my computer into hyper drive as my Facebook account was suddenly being bombarded with male erotic art from France, Italy, and the UK. The page is listed under “DIARY OF A MINOTOUR” and seems to originate out of Italy. I am not exactly sure what the page is actually about but there are lots of gay men contributing lots of images, constantly. In some ways it feel like I have hit the jackpot on a slot machine as my mail keeps dinging with something new about every 5 minutes. The page is a bit confusing and perplexing because there is no description of purpose or intent and much of the images contributed are not original art. Nobody seems to be tagging info to these images like who the artist is or where the image comes from. The pervasive theme seems to be male erotic without going or becoming pornographic. Some of the images I recognized from other homoerotic artists I have studied in the past and a few are from movies, or posters. But overall I have to say it has been one of the most exciting adventures I have been on in a long time. I feel like Alice who has just crossed over into a strange new Wonderland in a whole new world of exploration. Most of it’s foreign produced making it exciting to see something beyond norm of what I have been seeing here in the USA. Much of it is aligned with my own style and the way I see and view my art, very unconventional and poetic. There are so many stimulating images on this site that I feel an erotic surge touching something deep within myself that I have not felt in many years. There is a freshness and a boldness to so many of the images that is startling and challenging my way of examining homoerotic art. It is beginning to make me see my own art from a different perspective and helping me see the honesty and truth within my own work. It’s almost like watching a really interesting foreign film where you don’t need the subtitles, which I love anyway, so I am totally sucked in. Some of it feels so surreal that it begins to feel like an out of body experience, my brain is on overload trying to soak it all in and absorb what I can. It feels like a very fast flicker across my subconscious psyche. I am actually engaging in conversations, via chat, with so many of the contributors and artists. Though many of them are French and Italian and do not communicate in English I have enough background in the languages to read and understand what they are writing. The only drawback is it’s all becoming so overwhelming that I have actually had to shut down my Facebook account and mail in order to get work done and remain focused. My friend Giorgio keeps telling me that we, as artists, must network and make the connections in order for our works to be seen. I have been working hard this past month to make that happen. But there is a point where the networking and connections begin to interfere with the actual creation of art. There is a fine balance I am currently trying to maintain. Giorgio you are a genius when it comes to maintaining this and thanks for all your advice and support. Every time we chat you are working in the studio and seem so connected to your process. I look to you with admiration and inspiration. Perhaps it takes a long time to cultivate these connections and resources. I am so new to it all, because I have remained hidden for so long, that I am currently overwhelmed by how massive these potential connections can become. I feel like I want or need to connect to everyone at once. Ideally I would like to have a show with some of my images in it somewhere and think this is the best possible way to get my art out there. But it is like suddenly the world has connected to me and I fear losing myself within my own labyrinth of Internet buzz. It fascinates, captivates and scares me all at the same time, I must strive to find the balance and remain true to myself.

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