News: Ryan McGinley, Russia, Posh, Channing Tatum, Himalayas

Activist David Mixner on the mend. We are happy to hear it.

New Ryan McGinley solo exhibit in London features naked young people in caves.

Illinois Governor Pat Quinn restores budget funding for HIV/AIDS services.

How did Posh Spice's first day as an American Idol judge go?

Russian Big Brother contestant sues over claims he is gay and a prostitute: "His legal team says the case is the first time that a Russian public figure has sued over allegations that he is gay."

NPR covers New York's Big Gay Ice Cream Truck.

New anti-healthcare ad tactic: scare the hell out of seniors.

U.S. Attorney won't investigate Rainbow Lounge raid: "In a statement e-mailed to the Star-Telegram, Jacks wrote that although his office monitors reports of excessive force by local or state police, it is the role of the FBI to investigate complaints of civil-rights violations." Gay rights group continues push for outside inquiry...

Christian group in Russia wants gay culture to vanish: "Everything that is connected to the propaganda of gay culture must be moved away to limit the impact on ordinary people, because it leads to degradation."

Now this is what I'd expect Thor to look like.

WWF: Over 350 new species discovered in Himalayas in last decade. "This enormous cultural and biological diversity underscores the fragile nature of an environment which risks being lost forever unless the impacts of climate change are reversed."

Game Show Network's Newlywed Game seeks gay couples...

UK water park bans Speedos: "To prevent embarrassment among fellow members of the public and to maintain the family friendly atmosphere at the resort, bosses have taken the extreme measure of banning these tight trunks from their popular waterpark located within the Splash Landings Hotel."

Channing Tatum's stripper past.

Tennessee's first male strip club to open in Nashville over Labor Day Weekend. Metro Councilman: "I'm sick to my stomach - I'm just absolutely sick. It's different for a man to show himself than a woman. It's another step in the wrong direction."

Promo pics for yet another vampire series.

Michael Jackson buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in the Hollywood Hills.

The Shake Weight: with this and thighmaster you'll be all set.

John Mayer spends "mature and beautiful" evening out.

Survey to reveal number of gay clergy in England: "Inclusive Church, a network of individuals and organisations working for better recognition of minorities, says the survey will be the first of its kind and will prove that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered (LGBT) clergy play a crucial role in the everyday life of the church.

Gay Photog Ryan McGinley's Wrangler Roadkill

Photographer Ryan McGinley's new campaign for Wrangler is raising some eyebrows for its depictions of models as (hunted) wildlife. Imho they're spooky and strange in a good way. They're only for Europe though. America will likely get something much blander.

The most "controversial" roadkill image, AFTER THE JUMP...

The Male Gaze: Pornography or Art?

"The Male Gaze", the new group show of gay male art up at powerHouse Arena in the DUMBO area of Brooklyn, was recently given feature treatment in the New York Times as they lauded the entrance of a renewed gay aesthetic in the art world.

The images aren't proper for every gaze, however, according to the organizers of the Brooklyn Design Fair, which happened over the weekend. They requested that the gallery take down certain provocative images they didn't want children, who might be accompanying their parents to the design fair, to stumble upon.

A tipster sent us this photo of the list of artworks temporarily taken down by the gallery, along with this note:

"I asked one of the women at the cash register about the sign, and they said that they were expecting the fair would bring in customers with children, and that there was a concern that the work was too explicit. (Why a Design Fair specifically, and not just normal DUMBO traffic—would bring in children, is beyond me.) Three of the photographs removed were by Ryan McGinley—who had his own profile in the New York Times published the same day as Guy Trebay's 'Male Gaze' article. The fact that powerHouse chose to remove this work seems to suggest that they think the work is pornography, not art.

...There's a certain ironic poetry that this self-censorship occurred at a show that has been billed as symbolic of a larger, prideful movement (or moment) in gay art. For it to happen at a company that's known for publishing smart, alternative gay art books makes it even more disappointing. I can't help but feel that this action seriously undermines the institution's credibility, and highlights the rather unfortunate effects of gentrification on gay speech and sexuality."

Are the gallery's actions indicative of a broader double standard in our culture when it comes to sexually-charged male imagery? Does a photographer (McGinley) who has been the subject of a solo show at the Whitney Museum deserve removal from a gallery's walls on the chance that a parent and child might stumble upon them? Was it shameful or responsible of the gallery to censor part of its exhibition to appease a current segment of the public?

Two of the less explicit images on the list (above), by Brian Kenny and Ryan McGinley, respectively, are at the top of this post. Others can be found at the powerHouse site. "The Male Gaze" continues through May 27th.

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Ryan McGinley Wins International Center for Photography Nod

The International Center for Photography has just announced its "Infinity Awards" and gay photographer Ryan McGinley, who was the youngest artist ever to be granted a solo show at the Whitney in 2003, racks up another one. He has been awarded their "Young Photographer" prize.

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