Holidays And Hedonism: Melbourne’s Queer Art Shines In Summer Daze Exhibition
Image: Shini Pararajasingham and Nicky Tsekouras. Image: Supplied
Prepare your artistic taste buds, Collingwood鈥檚 Off the Kerb gallery is dishing up a colourful feast of queer art in its second annual Summer Daze 别虫丑颈产颈迟颈辞苍.听
Gallery owner and exhibition curator Shini Pararajasingham said this year鈥檚 showing features 鈥渟ofter and diluted鈥� representations of queer identities and experiences than the previous year.
鈥淚t鈥檚 talking about queer voices in all facets and this beautiful time of summer,鈥� she said.
With a diverse lineup of 24 local queer artists and a broad range of artistic mediums, visitors can expect to explore themes of 鈥渇un, holidays, and hedonism鈥�.
‘We Are All Unique’
Multidisciplinary artist Nicky Tsekouras is exhibiting a collection of insects that contain both male and female characteristics, made from discarded street posters.
Inspired by a childlike fascination with insects, Tsekouras said the unisex characteristics of the gynandromorphic organisms resonated with their non-binary and queer identity.聽
鈥淭hey鈥檙e extremely unique in their appearance, they鈥檙e not one-sided, they鈥檙e multifaceted in their wings and different elements of their bodies,鈥� they said.
鈥淎s queer people we are all unique and sometimes we don鈥檛 always remember that. Sometimes we can put very strict labels on ourselves.鈥�
Midsumma
Self-proclaimed clown and performance artist Cakeface is displaying a self-portrait entitled 鈥楩irst Pancake鈥�, influenced by the immense attention she received from her parents as their firstborn child.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an ode to putting all your effort into the first pancake and it not quite turning out right. But you always eat it anyway,鈥� she said.
鈥淭he clown archetype is closely linked to queer experiences of belonging to a community and being disowned by others.鈥�
Other artworks on display include David Le Goon鈥檚 smutty 鈥減iss-take鈥� on the classic Victorian painting 鈥楻ock of Ages鈥�, and Donika Fazliu鈥檚 moir茅 tribute to the trans and gender-diverse community.
Summer Daze began in 2022 as a celebration of the Midsumma Festival and the queer community, with the inaugural exhibition coinciding with Pararajasingham reaching a personal milestone: coming out as queer.
鈥淭here was such a supportive warm vibe last year, especially with all the emotions that surfaced from coming out and I just felt really protected and safe,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat gave me the impetus to run this every year.鈥�
Summer Daze will continue to exhibit until 1 Feb 2024 at Off the Kerb gallery on Johnston St, Collingwood.聽
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