Art in the Time of the AIDS Pandemic

ART IN THE TIME OF THE AIDS PANDEMIC

“Still i listen to the beat of my heart. Let this primal pulse lead me, though lately I’ve lived with another rhythm. At first i thought just time passing, but I discovered a time bomb ticking in my blood.”

-Marlon RIggs (Tongues Untied)

In the 1980’s, AIDS was a panademic, especially in the gay and black communities. Because these communities affected were not considered to be of importance (and in some cases, existence), AIDS continued to be un-acknowledged while fear and false information about it spread. When medicine for the disease was finally made, the prices were astronomical.

The artists in the pamphlet were active during that time, and a majority of them were curated in an exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery in 2010 called Hide/Seek. It showcased artists and artwork of lesbians, gays, trans people, and genderqueer people. I will be focusing on the topic of AIDS in the works,

KEITH HARING- An artist incredibly famous for his quick, cartoonish paintings. He put an emphasis on making art available to the public. In New York City, Haring, being gay, was very active in the community and created work for the AIDS activist group ACT UP.

You can see the repeated use of the characters covering their eyes, ears, and mouth, signifying the denial of the AIDS pandemic.

Silence=Death was a slogan used by ACT UP to address this denial.

KEITH HARING- UNFINISHED PAINTING (1989) This painting was Keith Haring’s last before he died of complications from AIDS. It’s an image of an unfinished tapestry, symbolizing the stunted potential of himself, and the community of people with AIDS.

There’s a profound sadness in it, because it holds all the things that would be done if not for the AIDS pandemic, but also invites future viewers to “finish” the tapestry, so to speak.

DAVID WOJNAROWICZ- A FIRE IN MY BELLY This video piece, 20 min long, is a montage of his state of being after his former lover died of AIDS and he discovered his own contraction of the disease. The images are dark, reflecting his feelings of isolation and quiet suffering.

He speaks to poverty with outstretched hands and bloodied coins, and creates visceral reactions to the piercing of his own body and the loving of his own body in a dark room. Ants, the closest society to the human society so says Wojnarowicz, scamper over a crucifix.

MARLON RIGGS- TONIGUES UNTIED Riggs’s rhythmic video is an autobiography of growing up black and gay, alienated in both communities. In this segment, poetry is read emphasizing the romance and sensitivity between two black men when they make love. The image fades to black thought as we

are told that even as they made love, they also feared that this may kill them.

Understandable, as Marlon Riggs speaks to the feeling of seeing his friends die one by one, and wondering when it will be his turn because he feels it is inevitable.

DAVID WOJNAROWICZ- UNTITLED (FACE IN DIRT) This portrait is a mourning portrait, mourning his slowly dying body by putting himself to death. This is confronting the fear of the abject, of both the sick and the dead. If the abject is repulsion because of fear of mortality, then Wojnarowicz provokes that repulsion .

It was not in his nature to go quietly, but to reveal, reveal, and reveal again the suffering of himself and, therefore, others dying of AIDS at the time. This is a symbol that he will die, but the cause will not be covered.

ROBERT MAPPLETHORPE- SELF PORTRAIT (1988) This, like Wojnarowcz, is a mourning portrait, though Mapplethorpe does it with a quiet dignity. The contrast is stark but his face is serene, a man who is emaciated but accepting of his future.

In his disconnected hand, he walks with death and is separated from his body. His body does not feel like his own anymore.

FELIX GONZALEZ-TORRES- UNTITLED Of the pieces I’ve chosen, this is the least direct about AIDS, though not any less powerful. It is also the only one not displayed in a gallery. This piece speaks to the absence felt by someone

meaningful. In his case, it is the death of his lover. The imprints in the bed indicated a recent loss, and the similarity of them suggests similar partners, or homosexual partners. The universality of suffering and abandonment, however, can create an emotional reaction in the random passerby.

FELIX GONZALEZ-TORRES- PORTRAIT OF ROSS IN L.A. An interactive piece, this is a conceptual representation of the artist’s dead lover. Ross’s favorite candy is piled onto a gallery floor. The weight is equivalent to Ross’s at his ideal weight: 175 lbs.

Viewers are encouraged to partake of the candy, which does many things: it causes a physical interaction with the conceptual person, it is a sweet takeaway from the conceptual person, it represents diminishment of “body”, and it implicates the viewer in the diminishment of the body. But there is also a sense of renewal in that the pile is refilled at the end of the day, bringing “Ross” back.

MEGAN HOFER