| Gay & Lesbian Art: Michael Breyette
Michael Breyette grew up in rural upstate NY - not the most
nurturing environment for a budding gay artist - and due to his
conservative surroundings, he always felt the need to include
female subjects in his artwork.
"I felt as long as my paintings featured a busty female, it was
safe to include a muscular Adonis," Breyette says. "Sometimes I
would disguise the hot guys in my paintings behind a science
fiction motif, or by doing a series such as 'Signs of the
Zodiac,' where one would feature a hot guy, and the next would
be of a female. I did whatever I could to express myself, even
if I did have to use the females in my art as a kind of security
blanket. But even those women that I felt compelled to draw
always ended up being rather muscular and manly looking."
One of his earliest positive experiences as a gay artist took
place in his early twenties as an employee at an art supply
store. Here he found a close friend in a co-worker named Deana.
He was finally able to confide in someone about being gay.
The acceptance he received from her was something he had never
experienced from anyone in his family. After some gentle
prodding from Deana, he began to display some of his "less
controversial" pieces in the store. "I was very pleased when
this created interest in my work and even brought me a few
commissions," Breyette says. "People actually felt I was good
enough to be paid for something I loved to do."
However, he got tired of painting people's portraits and gave up
painting for a while. Then he discovered the Internet: "I
started out by creating a personal website where I mentioned
being an artist. That led to people inquiring about my artwork.
I soon got the nerve to put up a few pieces. I had been so
afraid to share my paintings of nude men with people I knew. But
here I was, showing them off to the whole world. It felt so
liberating."
He started receiving compliments on his style and technique, as
well as on the subject matter. "I would get emails from other
gay men who would tell me how inspiring they found my artwork to
be... how refreshing it was to see real artwork featuring nude
men, not just more porn on the web," Breyette says. "It was
around this time that I opted for a change of scenery and moved
to Massachusetts. No longer living "back home" where I had
allowed my surroundings to stifle my creativity, I was finally
able to express myself as I had always wanted. No more hiding
behind drawings of women, family portraits or those lovely
little landscapes. My passion is the nude male body, and that is
what I choose to draw."
Where to find out more:
Lyman-Eyer Gallery
© Michael Breyette & Lyman-Eyer Gallery. Pictures used with permission.
|
