Silvia Prada's Obsessions

Photos from the exhibition's opening reception

Silvia Prada at VISO Project.

Silvia Prada has created the back page illustrations for many issue of our magazine, like this one and this one. She is an incredibly talented artist, especially with pencil and paper.

A couple of weeks ago she debuted a new show of her recent work at VISO Project in DUMBO. VISO Projects first store is down the street from our office, so we strolled over, chatted with some friends, and Abi took some photos of the crowd and the work on display.

Obsessions, a solo exhibition from the Spanish artist, also featuring additional works by Coco Capitán.

“The exhibition grew out of a conversation between Prada and Capitán, identifying the specific codes of their sexual attractions and articulating aspects of gay male identity they find alluring when expressed by women. Both artists fetishize a specific type of androgyny, informed by fleeting moments in late 80s and 90s pop culture. For Prada, the formation of this particular androgyny is an obsession. Like a historian she archives gender experimentation from this period in music, fashion advertising, and gay culture.”

One of the most interesting aspects of the show is its ‘obsession’ with Princess Diana and what the two artists call her “under appreciated role as a master of androgyny.”

Young Diana (I guess there really is only young Diana) is a focus of many of Silvia’s illustrations. I’ll let her tell explain in her own words where that interest comes from:

“I watched this video of Princess Diana and Prince Charles being quizzed by all these journalists and one of the journalists shoots this question: ‘are you cooking him breakfast?’ She’s so quick and says ‘I don’t eat breakfast’ — it’s brilliant. I sent Coco in London an oversized super gay sweater I designed that says ‘I don’t eat breakfast’ and she created a photographic piece with the sweater.”

The show Obsessions runs until this Sunday July 16th, if you have a chance this weekend to visit, run don’t walk! It’s great!