What does it mean to be a queer body in nature? How is that body represented and who is granted access to the spaces that are foundational to the larger American identity? How can we rethink the ways in which our bodies move within these spaces while also confronting the formative political and social ideologies of our past and the ways in which they have shaped our present-day?
In a thought provoking exploration of queer bodies in space, Moules infects the American landscape with queerness. The work reimagines foundational 19th-century landscape imagery by blending 1980s horror movie references, paintings from the Hudson River School, glitter, and silicone to challenge American identity formation with queer materiality.
As Moules explains, “This project examines these formative works while rendering new views of a non-hierarchical landscape full of queer joy. Amorphous silicone bodies undulate over and around the paintings, reframing and obscuring the historical narratives while revealing spaces reimagined. The squishy silicone material is somewhat reminiscent of the 1980s The Blob with the texture of a fleshy sex toy. There is a sense of freedom and autonomy within these bodies, lacking firm structure while still having bodily specificity such as moles, pimples, and occasionally hair. Within these paintings, there are often glitter and sparkling jockstraps strewn about, signifying the remnants of a queer gathering that left the landscape a lot more interesting and exciting than before.”
With 36 pieces ranging in size, Moules creates an impressive integration of canvas and silicone, deftly contrasting the mediums in some, while choosing to blend them almost seamlessly in others. The resulting exhibition juxtaposes puritanical, conservative Christian history with the imagery of 1980s horror films that have become representative of queer culture, for an undeniable deep dive into identity.
