Sexual Portraits
Edward Melcarth and Homoeroticism in Modern American Art
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4494325 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Erin Griffey (0000-0002-3637-9396, University of Auckland), Barry Reay (0000-0001-8478-3548, University of Auckland) |
| Year | 2012 |
| Volume | 73 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Pages | 66-94 |
| Publication date | 2012-04-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | History Workshop Journal (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1363-3554 • E-ISSN: 1477-4569 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/hwj/dbr027 |
| PMID | 22830092 |
| OpenAlex | W2106026738 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 2 |
Although one will not find Edward Melcarth (1914-73) in the best recent histories of male homosexuality and American art, he was not always so spectral. Named in Life magazine in 1950 as one of the best young American artists, he exhibited as a painter, draftsman and sculptor and also practised as an illustrator, photographer and designer. His work survives in the Forbes Collection, in the Smithsonian Institution and in the art archives at the Kinsey Institute. We argue that Melcarth’s vision of the erotic was far broader than the traditional categories of sexuality that are perpetuated in art histories of homoeroticism in modern America – and that such a revisioning enables a reinterpretation of some of the better known images of homosexual art.
Art · Art history · Human sexuality · Masculinity · Media studies · Portrait · Sociology · The arts · Visual arts · Gender Studies · Historical Art and Culture Studies · Historical Gender and Feminism Studies · Historical Studies on Reproduction, Gender, Health, and Societal Changes · History
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |