Homunculi
Everyone has drawn a dick at some point.
My Homunculi are a series of ink drawings that emerged from the ubiquitous phenomenon of the dick drawing. The first sketches in this series came into being when I was working abroad in a country where the slightest mention of homoerotic art, gay porn, or queer imagery could result in incarceration. Perhaps a form of protest, my early drawings were made quickly and humbly; a simple brush, some India ink, and a sheet of photocopy paper gave form to a life-sized cock on the page, rife with unapologetic folds, textures, and hair. I tore up the drawings in consternation, but remembered them often over the years as form of respite from an art practice that was decidedly void of sexuality.
Homunculus #122 India ink on paper, 8.5” x 11” 2021
Model: Joe from Sicily @rgbpassion
What began as a quiet protest became an artistic coming-out when back home, in isolation, I began producing and sharing my drawings on social media under the name Homunculus Rex, or ‘King of the Little Men’. A close friend remarked that every penis is a person - it bears the weight of its upbringing and is marked by the social and cultural forces impressed upon it so that it takes on a life of its own. Soon after releasing my drawings to the public, I began to receive unsolicited submissions from followers who wanted their penises drawn in the same way. Through our exchanges, I heard stories of terrible past lives filled with rampant homophobia, shame, persecution, and self-harm. Many of my followers were submitting themselves to be drawn in dissent against a system of oppression, to celebrate the freedom, beauty, and complexity of their queer identities by way of these simple portraits. What began as a personal protest developed into a collective one.
left Homunculus #143 India ink on paper, 8.5” x 11” 2021
Model: Erotic Model @erotic_model18
right Homunculus #145 India ink on paper, 8.5” x 11” 2021
Model: Anonymous
Each human form I draw is a performance, both by the model who decides how and where they stage their self-portrait, and by me, who draws quickly and expressively to capture the essence of the individual I am rendering. I believe the beauty and purpose of my Homunculi is found in the variation of the collection, made up from a diversity of human collaborators from around the globe. Bearing themselves and their bodies, each person confronts their vulnerability and acknowledges, with pride, their value both as a unique, fleshy animal and as a queer citizen of the world.
Homunculus Rex
You can follow Rex on Instagram @iamhomunculusrex
