Slava Mogutin

Slava Mogutin uses photography to agitate mainstream cultural norms and draw attention to Queer subcultures. These images were made shortly after his arrival in the United States after facing homophobic persecution in Russia. He performs different identities and moods in these works, which also reflect a sense of his newfound freedom.

Mogutin has stated:

I see my body as a tool of resistance. When [German artist] Joseph Beuys talked about every human as a social sculpture, he meant that the very act of living can be perceived and presented as an act of political activism. From my early performances in Russia I put myself in the very center of my artistic expression. I rebelled against the system through my art as much as my actions.

–Conor Moynihan, assistant curator of prints, drawings, and photographs