The first time Queerguru became aware of Provincetown based British queer artist Jo Hay’s work was of her visually striking exhibit of stylized oversized rabbit paintings that filled the Carolyn Kramer Gallery a few years back. I was very intrigued and wished I had inquired then about her seemingly obsession with leporidae.
However what really drew me enthusiatically to Hays work was an exhibit entitled Benders . Hay explained that “the Benders series portrays individuals who do not choose to be labeled either male or female but instead describe themselves as gender fluid—they experience and express an innate sense of both sexes. Since childhood, when I first witnessed the flamboyantly styled androgynous members of UK glam rock bands of the 1970’s and later the drag queens and transsexuals on the streets in 1990’s NYC, I have been captivated and delighted by the visual and emotional confusion that gender duality produce”.
Having enjoyed a similar background to Hay I could so relate to these outrageously colorful characters that were a major part of my own coming out.
Hay’s work is always politically motivated/inspired none more so than her latest body of work titled Persisters . Since 2017 after the United States Senate voted to silence Senator Elizabeth Warren’s objections to confirmation of Senator Jeff Sessions as U.S. Attorney General, the feminist movement adopted the expression “Nevertheless, she persisted” Hay has used to describe her collection of large-scale paintings, portraits of women who have also “persisted” on behalf of us all.
They include Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Rachel Maddow, Nancy Pelosi, Elizabeth Warren, Ayanna Pressley, Emma Gonzalez, Dr Christine Blasey-Ford, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Stacey Abrams, Greta Thunberg and Kamala Harris.
It is an extraordinary collection of very powerful portraits that the LGBTQ community in particular really relate, although each of these women’s outreach has helped change and empower the world at large.
In a forward for the exhibit author John T. O’Connor writes : The engagement is visual as well as narrative. While each portrait puts viewers in mind of the incredible work done by these women, their stories and histories (which of course are ongoing), the visual contents are perhaps even more inspiring. These huge canvases are infused with energy and inspiring joy. You can see the delight and commitment with which they persist in resisting. The colors are striking and vibrant. The brushstrokes are bravura yet nuanced to be sure. After seeing these recent works by Jo Hay, one has a sense that yes, it is possible to persist and in fact it’s required and will be exhilarating.
https://www.persistersjohay.com/ Jo Hay is represented by Carolyn Kramer Gallery and The Miller Gallery
