Armando

Rice Krispies at 5:30 a.m.
 

I often create characters that I think I might be able to fit into a narrative or scenario, but as in the case of this guy, sometimes I just can't figure out how to use them. So I was searching through some old sketchpads recently and thought that perhaps I should pull out a few of these dudes, bring them to a "finished" stage and set them loose to find their own adventures as I had failed to incorporate them into a full-fledged sexual fantasy. I'm not generally a fan of single-figure/minimal background representations (Who are they? Where are they? Why are they naked and erect?) but there was simply no alternative in this case.

Here's my thoughts about why these guys never found a suitable scenario to be party to. I spend a lot of time with characters as I'm developing them. I imagine a certain amount of biographical data so that when I eventually put them in finished piece it's a plausible sexual situation. There is some structure to my more involved scenes, I like to pair up different types of people to heighten the dramatic narrative. Young/old, fit/flabby, participants coming from different ethnic, social and economic backgrounds. Inclusiveness has always been an underlying theme for me and showcasing body types not routinely represented in the works of other erotic artists is something that I consciously decide to follow. Each of these drawings took between 8-12 hours to complete and while I was working on them I pondered the reason I never got around to utilizing them in the expected manner. Each character had different problems and I thought it might be of interest if I explained what lead them to be rejected and relegated to "outcast" status.

Armando is fairly new coming into the pantheon a bit more than a year ago. I had become aware of the large Armenian community out here in L.A. and it's environs, particularly Glendale. I discovered that they were somewhat clannish and restricted their association with non-Armenians to a relatively superficial level. At least that's what I've been told. I don't know for certain, I have yet to corner an actual Armenian and get it from the horse's mouth. So, I was thinking of possible other ethnic peoples that might also live in a big city but retain their tribal attitudes. Someone raised in the womb of a somewhat closed-off community, Armando (as I've yet to discover a common Armenian name — and have no idea if their cock pigment is regularly darker — maybe he's El Salvadorian...) thought he might be queer at nineteen but assumed it was a passing phase. We all know where that goes. By 24, he'd realized that he was "afflicted" by a condition that simply did not exist in his known world. So, he got his own apartment just outside of the official realm of his people and began visiting gay bars. He hadn't the skills or vocabulary to interact with the homos (and being fiercely proud of his heritage, felt no need to develop any). So, he was considered rude and arrogant and usually ended up bringing home some desperate and damaged queen. I was never able to shoehorn Armando into a positive artistic depiction (because ultimately I want my art to express every homosexual union as a satisfying experience) because he's kind of an asshole. He's not a bad guy, he's simply not in a position to enjoy his queerness, yet.

— Michael Kirwan

Armando — Rice Krispies at 5:30 a.m. — 2009 —  5¼" x  12½"