Marcus Mok, The Offering

Hares & Hyenas
63 Johnston Street
Fitzroy, Vic
(Until August 6)

Currently hanging in the shop’s sumptuous space is the eye-catching work of Singapore-based artist Marcus Mok. For his latest series, Anonymous, Mok has photographed male nudes in both man-made and natural landscapes. The resulting works can be read in a number of ways.

One reading could posit Mok as cultural critic readdressing the lack of Asian male representation in photography. In this sense, Mok can be seen as opening up a space of cultural activism, dissidence and reinvention. Historically, a Eurocentric point of view has constructed the Asian male body as passive and feminine. In Mok’s hands the Asian male body is empowered, strong and self-assured.

Another way of reading Mok’s practice is through an aesthetic appreciation of the images; the manner in which the photographs are composed. A self-taught artist, Mok has an eye for dramatic contrasts between the subjects on display and the environments in which they’re placed. Light, texture and form are used to powerful effect to emphasise the musculature of the various male bodies on display. In some of the works the muscular male physique is placed against an industrial background; others depict the body against a natural background, a layered rock face or foliage.

Rather than show full-frontal nudity in this series, Mok alludes to the sexual allure of the men on display through sensual positioning. Coming from a country that still has issues with the representation of male nudes, Mok has experienced censorship first hand. As a result, he’s learnt to be creative in the ways in which he displays the masculine body. The results result in an erotic playfulness between the viewer, and the subject on display.

Anonymous succeeds in celebrating the physical qualities of the male body, but also succeeds in questioning received concepts of race and masculinity. Simultaneously, these works also recognise the complexities of homoerotic visibility in countries such as Singapore.

Mok’s approach to his art is summed up in one of his favourite quotes: “No matter how much they legislate against us or how strongly they disapprove of us, they can’t imprison our spirit”.

Look out for the next exhibition coming up at Hares & Hyenas in August by artist Mel Simpson.

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