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forbidden fruits (kyoto journal’s gender in asia issue)

January 4, 2007 in drawing, events | No comments


(click the image to view close up)

i did this drawing for the new “unbound: gender in asia” issue of the kyoto journal. i originally submitted this along with “all i can see” for possible cover images. i guess they didn’t want so many nipples on the cover: “all i can see” didn’t get used at all, and this drawing is on the table of contents page. it’s strange, because i think “all i can see” is a way better drawing than this one. that’s okay, it showed up in the interview about me in the sheaf.

the actual cover of the kyoto journal issue shows a collection of women’s shoes. it was published back in november, but i couldn’t find it in any bookstores in saskatoon (it’s distributed all over the world). i had to wait to receive my copy from japan.

as a supplement to the issue, some of my drawings are being shown on the kyoto journal online. i chose the two drawings that i did on purpose for this submission, plus some other drawings that ended up having something to do with gender. or at least, they’re nipple-related.

i thought about the theme of gender when i was drawing “forbidden fruits” and “all i can see”. i don’t usually think about anything when i’m drawing, except drawing (and curb your enthusiasm, which i watch a lot while i’m drawing). i don’t really know what this drawing “means”, but that’s what i drew.

the kyoto journal is written in english, so you can read it too. look for it in your local bookstore. if you find it in saskatoon, let me know!

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all i can see…

August 31, 2006 in drawing, events | 7 comments


(click to enlarge the image)

the kyoto journal asked me to submit some work for their upcoming issue on gender in japan. i know some frequent contributors to the kyoto journal, from before i moved to canada. i submitted two drawings, one of which they’re planning to use for the table of contents page. also, one of my loudsilence photos may be used to illustrate a short story. i don’t usually draw from a theme. i just draw whatever comes to mind. so it was interesting to do a drawing with a particular theme in mind: gender in japan.

in my drawing, a boy is having breasts sewn over his eyes. he’s happy about it. he is being made more feminine. usually, that means taking something away (castration). but this is an addition, not a subtraction. i think femininity, including traditional parts like motherhood, is a positive thing. men and women are both better off if they can be feminine. not instead of other things, but in addition to them.

this drawing is not going to be used for the kyoto journal magazine, so i’m finally showing it on my blog. i’d been keeping it on hold. it’s one of my favorites. since doing this drawing, i did other drawings that also ended up following some sort of gender theme. “inside of me“, “20/20” and “my secret elephant” are some of the examples. they might be used by the kyoto journal as part of an online feature.

UPDATE: you can buy a print of this drawing from my SHOP.

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