2022, Sheepskin, steel, mother of pearl, sterling silver, pigmented ink, lacquer, thread
“The Warm Ones” are a group of hooded masks inspired by the vibrant masquerade traditions of Eastern Europe that celebrate humanity’s complex relationship with winter and my own journey to understanding my queerness. The word “warm” (meleg) in Hungarian has a second meaning as gay or queer. The guise of a mask can lend ferocity that the wearer can use to “frighten” the unrelenting cycles of nature that humanity is at the mercy of: winter, death, famine, ect. Masks welcome the subversion of gender and age; they allow humans to emulate the power of beasts or the robustness of nature. Because my work is frequently about telling the story of the “other” or the “unknown” I find a deep interest in these traditions. The entities represented by these masks are fearsome and stalwart in the face of winter and can be donned for self reflection or taking action. They are both queer and warm.
Photo by Magdalena Csipo