Saturday, February 4, 2012

Men Only: Vernacular Photographs of Male Affection
ArtRage Gallery

Price: Free
ArtRage Gallery
505 Hawley Ave., Syracuse

This exhibit of works from the collection of William Knodel looks at masculinity, gender and sexuality in our society. William Knodel was a college student in the 1970s in New York City when he purchased his first second-hand snapshot, a group of young men in assorted swimming attire whose style dated them back to the turn of the century, posing before a camp tent marked with a sign, "Men Only." Since then, he's collected vernacular images of male affection -- tintypes, daguerreotypes and photos -- during his travels to the West Coast, Canada, and Europe, scouring second-hand shops, old photo sales and used book stores. His collection now runs into the hundreds, dating from the mid-19th century and featuring couples and socializing groups from every race and social class. "Men Only" is a gift that incarnates the "gay spirit" that his good friend Harry Hay warned us must be kept alive and a history too often dismissed.

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