Man-ufactured reality

Gerry Parke is an artist whose work unpacks masculinity as a construct ~

If we looked hard enough, we'd all find embarrassing photos of ourselves that exist both online and offline. But what happens when you've moved on from a certain stage of your life and photos of you are shared without warning or permission?

When a high school friend shared photos of Gerry Parke on Facebook, his reaction was visceral. In those photos, Gerry saw himself trying to mirror and perform a rigid masculine role that was celebrated and enforced by those around him. Having since grown from feeling confined to that role, to unpack the emotions that the photos provoked and the idea of performative masculinity, Gerry picked up his paintbrush.

Topics include: masculinity as a construct, the performance of masculinity online, permanence, the right to be forgotten, kids on social media and more.

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You can find Gerry's work on his personal website and follow him on Instagram. If you're in Auckland, New Zealand, you can go to Gerry's solo show at Whitespace Gallery (on until February 14th, 2020).

Resources mentioned in this podcast:

• Stuff article by Katherine Dolan
• The Mask You Live In - documentary that unpacks masculinity
• The Descent of Man - book by Grayson Perry
• Idles - punk band who unpack masculinity

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