Fairyland

February 23, 2019 - March 31, 2019

Leonard Greco

This recent body of work he's called Fairyland has developed a definite camp sensibility (not dissimilar to the theatrical confections of Cecil Beaton in the 1920’s). Camp, having been described as the lie that tells the truth, is an innate language he has been reticent to explore until recently.

Perhaps internalized homophobia has left him hesitant to make work so boldly queer – in every sense of the word – making art so openly flamboyant. Purposely stamped with informed wit and a wry knowing humor, this new work is first and foremost intended to visually delight and be taken seriously .

Among other things, it touches on the weighty tableau of the Temptation of St. Anthony of the Desert and the perilous trials of Herakles. His aesthetic expression is influenced by his instinctive inclination to lighten somber somewhat ponderous existential themes with a gay touch (consciously using this word in both its current identity-laden fraught understanding and the anachronistic yet more delightful sense). While the work possesses decidedly camp sensibilities it is never ironic as is so often the current fashion. He finds irony frequently cynical; his work is never cynical for no other reason than the inherent affection he holds for his motley crew of heroes, saints and sinners .He draws indiscriminately upon diverse seemingly unrelated archetypes and themes from many sources, including Classical mythology, British folklore, Wagnerian operas and the biblical text of my Catholic youth, doing so in order to touch upon that which is culturally familiar to him, to others – and if we believe Jung – found deeply rooted as archetypes in our souls. These eternal themes provide me ample, seemingly endless, means of interpretation. As a person steeped in the Western tradition of literature and the visual arts, it is a rich fertile field he feels most comfortable in adopting.

The work presented at Fairyland are these familiar themes, explored many times over by countless artist; yet this time re-imagined through a prism of his own. His play upon cultural themes hopefully adds a sentence or two to this ongoing cultural conversation. Working in variety of mediums, and a fabulist by nature, it is my intention to create a theatrical spectacle that is peculiar, visually arresting and deeply personal. Although the work is made solely for his own delight, He hopes others find the work meaningful in some way. He also hopes visitors feel inspired to resist the siren call of selfies and pause instead, if only for a moment, as these works are visually dense and to add their own voice to this enriching and frequently neglected conversation.

With that, welcome to his Fairyland.