Pushing the boundaries of explicitty and heteronormativity through art

TAYLOR PIPE

The intersection of art, queerness and expression has been a catalyst for a new generation of artists to emerge and redefine representation.

In this generation is Ro Smith, a now-graduated University of Guelph art student whose passion for queer identity in art, the human form and anime transcends the canvas. Smith encourages his audience to question things by creating a moment to look past initial shock and into their own realizations of queer erasure in media.

“As an artist I feel like I'm able to numb myself and completely separate desire from just the artistic and visual appreciation of bodies and sexuality and all that amazing stuff.” Smith said to The Ontarion. “You have these naked forms and the Sistine Chapel that aren't related to sexual desire necessarily, but they’re still nudes. So what is that line? And what is that like tipping point that brings it to one side or the other? And why are there even sides in the first place as well?”

In Smith’s 2021 exhibition at Zavitz Gallery on the U of G campus, To The Moon and Back, he explored the popular anime Sailor Moon and looked into how certain messaging within the show was undermined or even erased for a North American audience.

“Even like Sailor Uranus and Neptune being a lesbian couple, but yet in the North American version, they're made as cousins,” Smith said.

Smith looked deeper into the meaning of the censorship surrounding LGBTQ+ characters in media, specifically in anime.

“I really appreciate the privilege I have as a queer person living in the time that I'm in right now because there's been so many queer stories and artworks and just like expressions in general, that have either been not highlighted enough or have been censored for being overly sexualized” Smith said.

This exploration played a large role in Smith’s future works, like his BOYS LOVE showcase in Winter 2022. However, instead of Sailor Moon, he turned to other popular anime shows that catered to a more masculine audience.

“I always had this vivid mem-

After attending a brainstorming workshop, Smith had 48 hours to design the pride-themed shoes he now calls 'Dick Kicks'. CREDIT: KYLE VANDENBERG

ory of sitting down on the floor and watching Sailor Moon and my mom being behind me and saying, ‘Oh, isn't that a girl show?’ and that was the first time I ever recognized that we give gender to these properties when I was just enjoying it.” Smith said.

Smith said the collection was a mix of anime and gay erotica, but also had an interactive video game components during the gallery showing. Smith also said that it was a play on stereotypes but also a love letter to himself thus far.

“It was the fact that I was tapping into my own identity as… being born a male and diving in and expressing what I truly love and what is deeply rooted within me myself as an individual, besides all the stereotypes that people throw at me,” Smith said.

This past summer, Smith was selected to be one of 30 artists chosen for a collaboration between Martk’d and Ebay where the artists had to design a white puma shoe with ‘pride’ as the inspiration. During a creative brainstorming session for this project, Smith asked how far he could push the boundaries of explicit imagery.

“I was like, should I just make a Sailor Moon shoe? Should I just, like, do that?” Smith said. “But that didn't really feel true to me. I knew that I wouldn't be as proud of it as I would and so honestly, I just said ‘Fuck it. I'm just going to do my classic design.’”

The design Smith chose was a plain white shoe with a collage of male genitalia drawn in black ink. He lovingly refers to the shoes as 'Dick Kicks'. The monochromatic look of the shoe was symbolic to Smith and spoke to how pride has become a chance for marketing teams to showcase their performative inclusivity.

“I've gone through this thing of kind of losing ownership of the rainbow… with corporations and just all the rainbow washing that happens,” Smith said. “I felt like I could represent myself and my community without having to cater to what this corporate hyper marketing pride month of June has become.”

Smith has continued to create unapologetic artwork and said that he’s looking forward to getting to explore more facets of his identity through different mediums of art, like fashion and performance. Even though he said he isn’t sure where life will end up taking him, one thing is for sure.

“Like I always say, the dicks ain't going nowhere - like they're gonna be everywhere,” Smith said. “So I don't know… But people better watch out.”