We also asked for love: Gay men’s narrative portraits of resilience and resistance

This exhibition is a collaboration between Edgar Rodríguez-Dorans and visual artist Eleonora Scalise creating a new body of work based on the concept of narrative portrait. Open to everyone!

About We also asked for love: Gay men’s narrative portraits of resilience and resistance

Sorry, but this event has been and gone!

Supported by the National Lottery through Creative Scotland, this project creates a new body of work based on the concept of 'narrative portraiture'. Visual artist Eleonora Scalise responds to research conducted by Dr Edgar Rodríguez-Dorans (Research Fellow at the Centre for Creative-Relational Inquiry) with ten gay men from different ages and backgrounds. The resulting narrative portraiture artwork is inspired by anonymous interviews with gay men.

‘Narrative portraiture’ establishes a dialogue between visual arts and narrative research. It uses anonymised narrative data from research interviews to inspire portraits of people who have never been seen by the artist. Because of the sensitive topics discussed in research interviews, personal data are often anonymised and participants’ life stories become faceless stories in academic journals. The written word becomes privileged and the face, the body, and even the human qualities of the people who shared their stories often get lost in scientific reports. Because research findings cannot exist without the people who provided their narratives, this exhibition aims to capture the metaphorical aspects of the stories and create images of the people who told them.

‘When we were given sex, we also asked for love: gay men’s narrative portraits of resilience and resistance’ is a collaboration between Edgar Rodríguez-Dorans, expert in the study of gay men’s identities, and artist Eleonora Scalise, who has worked extensively in the genre of portraiture. Edgar researches lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer relationships and identities from a perspective of mental health and embraces an interdisciplinary perspective. He is interested in the dialogue between arts and qualitative research in social science. He thinks that the importance of this project lies on the need to remind the viewer that, although the sensitivity of their stories requires participants’ identities to remain anonymous, research findings emerge from full-fleshed people and the medium of narrative portraiture gives these narratives a face and body.

Eleonora Scalise – who is experienced in painting dramatic portraits and has conveyed complex themes such as multiculturalism, gender, tragedy and despair through her artwork – has read the anonymised narratives of the gay men who participated in the study. She perceives in them an ambivalent sense of hopelessness and resilience, love and resistance in the often-sexualised stories of these men. By imagining who are the men behind the stories, Eleonora painted ten portraits based on the real-life stories represented in the narrative data.
The portraits, along with the narratives that inspired them, will be shown at a public, free exhibition as part of the activities of Pride Month.

While we take every opportunity to ensure the details for We also asked for love: Gay men’s narrative portraits of resilience and resistance are accurate, we always advise that you contact the event organiser before setting out for the event to avoid disapointment.

Want to be the first to hear about what's happening in Edinburgh? Just hit 'Like' on our What's On Edinburgh Facebook page, join the What's On Scotland Facebook Group and 'Follow' on our @WhatOnEdinburgh Twitter account and you're all set!

Other Events at Whitespace

Wallpaper, Paint, String Theory and Bombglass

24th August 2019 - 29th August 2019

This art exhibiton of four contemporary artists collectively brings an experienced and reflective eye to the fringe with a feast of colour, verve, gentle humour and imagination.

Exhibitions Events you might like...

From Shanghai with Love

23rd Aug 2019 - 24th Aug 2019
Playfair Library Hall, Edinburgh South

The popular From Shanghai with Love Fashion Show and Exhibition returns for a third year bringing cutting-edge modern and futuristic fashion technology to the stunning Playfair Library!

Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop Exhibition Tour

23rd August 2019
Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop, Leith

Drop into ESW at 2pm on Fridays and Saturdays throughout Edinburgh Art Festival for guided tours of works by Caroline Achaintre, Adam Benmakhlouf and Lucy Wayman.

Wallpaper, Paint, String Theory and Bombglass

24th Aug 2019 - 29th Aug 2019
Whitespace, Edinburgh South

This art exhibiton of four contemporary artists collectively brings an experienced and reflective eye to the fringe with a feast of colour, verve, gentle humour and imagination.

Find Exhibitions events in Edinburgh

Arts and Crafts Events you might like...

Introduction to Silver Clay Jewellery-Making

20th August 2019
The Arienas Collective, Edinburgh New Town

Using silver clay, learn how to make three different pieces of silver jewellery at this one-day workshop with The Arienas Collective.

Silver Clay Jewellery Taster

20th August 2019
The Arienas Collective, Edinburgh New Town

On this taster workshop at The Arienas Collective you will create a pendant or pair of earrings from hallmark-quality silver with experienced, local jeweller Anna Campbell.

Willow Weaving Workshop: Craft Scotland Summer Show 2019

20th Aug 2019 - 24th Aug 2019
White Stuff Edinburgh, Edinburgh New Town

Weave a boat-shaped basket from organically grown Scottish willows, guided by experienced basketweaver Anna Liebmann, in this workshop run by Craft Scotland on either 20th or 24th August.

Find Arts and Crafts events in Edinburgh

LGBTQ Events you might like...

Viola: A new Shakespearean circus

27th September 2019
Assembly Roxy, Edinburgh Old Town

Based on “Twelfth Night”, Viola is a new LGBT aerial theatre work, using aerial and acrobatic movement to challenge and expand our understandings of gender performance and mental health.