Posted on 05/20/2005 10:00:11 AM PDT by Alouette
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two gay Israeli men have installed a huge double bed in a New York art gallery and are inviting Arab men to become their "lover" as part of an exhibition called "Sleeping with the Enemy."
But the artists who like to be known simply as Gil and Moti talk about the project in romantic terms, saying it's about "falling in love" rather than sex. Gil said visitors should not come to the show expecting to see pornography.
"The bed is there for us to live in. Artistically there are three pillows to symbolize unity of three people which goes along with the whole concept of make love not war," he said.
"We try to actually open up a dialogue and debate which is about more important issues than just sexual matters and if there's sex, OK, but it's not something we're interested in discussing," Gil said.
The sales pitch for the show in which the two live and work in the gallery surrounded by their art reads: "Israeli artists Gil and Moti are gay, married and in love. For 5 weeks, they court an Arab lover."
Since late 2002 they have made contact online with as many as 300 Arab men from across the Middle East. They typically send a message through a dating site asking if they can paint a picture from the man's photo and explaining who they are.
They then scan and e-mail the painting as a means of "seduction" and hopefully start a dialogue and meet, Gil said.
The gallery called Jack the Pelican, in Brooklyn, is displaying over 100 of the watercolors, priced at $700-$900, along with some transcripts of e-mail exchanges, photos and oil paintings and the bed.
"We felt frustrated with the political situation in the Middle East," said Gil. "As Israelis, we grew up with Arabs but we were encouraged by the education system to hate and abuse them so we thought we must do something about it."
"So we decided to fall in love with one of them."
STILL SEARCHING FOR THE RIGHT MAN
Moti is coy when asked whether the bed might actually be put to use if they meet an Arab man they like.
"We want people to think about sex when they enter the show because we have a bed in the front and it's clear that we are living here, but we're not interested in showing that," he said, appearing a little bashful for a man standing in front of paintings of naked men in graphic sexual positions.
Gil said they had not invited anybody to join them yet but one local Arab man had invited them to his home.
The exhibit includes video and pictures of a Lebanese man called Oliver who lived with them for nearly a year in the Netherlands. One photograph shows the three men standing naked and covered in mud in a wood, holding hands.
"We actually fell in love, with the three of us," Gil said. "He saw us as one person because we're together 24 hours a day, I think it's no longer clear how individual we are."
"He said he loved not just us but the concept. But at some point it got complicated," Gil said, explaining that Oliver found the pressure of living with performance artists who consider their life a constant show too difficult, so he left.
Aged 37 and 33, Gil and Moti, who met 11 years ago at art school in Israel, dress alike, on this occasion in yellow tee-shirts embroidered by Gil's mother with flowers and their names in Arabic, and both wear their hair gelled into spikes.
Good grief!
This is wrong on so many levels.
I think I need to go camping for a while now...
I'll forego the obvious pun here......
I don't think it will actually happen.
Anybody who takes them up on it knows they will be dead right after that..
Disturbing, though..
Bet they would walk a mile for a camel...jockey.
"Single, Arab Jihadist GM, seeking Jewish Bi or GM for relationship. N/S preferred. Into long walks on the beach, lattes, and Judy Garland music. No cats or dogs--gerbils OK. BD & SM a must. Must be discreet.
The question is, will this queer coupling "relieve tension" between Arabs and Jews (at least the Sweetpeas among them),
or ENZYTE (re-MEMBER, erections lasting 4 hours or more may require a visit to the emergency room) violence?
Will these people ever achieve PIECE?
In all seriousness, this deserves a major BARF ALERT (I like the South Park graphic).
Romans 1:24-36 "Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
The warning has been given. This is truly sickening and everyday it seems to get worse. God help us.
Didn't John Lennon and Yoko Ono have some sort of bed-in to make some sort of statement?
Read this about 15 minutes ago. I would equate these two perverts to the teacher in "Looking for Mr. Goodbar."
Good one!
"barf up a lung"
No thanks...I like my lungs...think I'll keep 'em. j/k
Oh...what passes as art these days. Ugh!
Well, it is kind of funny.
Didn't John Lennon and Yoko Ono have some sort of bed-in to make some sort of statement?
***
Yes, years ago. I think it was for world peace or world peas, or world pi$$ or something.
:)
So how does allah feel about gayarab.com ?
They could just put the photo of Saadam in his underwear in the bed with them.
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