Now at Transmission Gallery

​Josh Katz: Self Portrait in ​Lipstick and Leather

My name is Josh Katz and I am a Queer mural artist based out of Oakland, California. In my murals, I engage the public by inserting Queer imagery onto city walls, increasing visibility where it is underrepresented. I work almost exclusively in spray paint, using portraits to highlight stories of Queer activism and artistry. When choosing my subjects, I often focus on local leaders, and include them in the creative process whenever possible. These murals have been incredibly rewarding because I am able to educate myself about Queer culture and history while also raising awareness about it.

​For this project at Transmission Gallery, however, I experimented with content I have yet to explore: self-portrait. Prior to painting this piece, I completed two separate murals of drag queens. I have always found inspiration in drag’s fearless freedom of expression and ability to break down society’s imposed gender expectations. Working through those two portraits offered me an opportunity to reflect on my own gender identity. Upon completing those murals, I found myself wanting to continue that self-examination. Creating this self-portrait for Transmission Gallery was an essential step in my process.
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Our notions of gender are informed by our cultural context. In Western culture, gender is presented as a rigid binary, male or female, with a strict set of behaviors assigned to each. The art of drag breaks down this binary however, illuminating that gender expression is a limitless spectrum which can be constructed and deconstructed, played with and performed. While I have never performed as a drag queen, painting portraits of queens reminded me that I do often engage in my own variety of drag. 
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For years I have been active in the gay leather community. Contrary to drag queens, who usually perform femininity, gender expression in the leather community often revolves around the performance and fetishization of hyper-masculinity. In my own experience, I find that while this performance can be appealing in a sexual context, it can sometimes feel rigid and constricting, lacking the levity inherent to drag. In my self-portrait, I incorporate the playfulness of drag with my overtly masculine presentation, and give my man-drag a makeover. This painting, called “Self-Portrait in Leather and Lipstick,” offered me a much needed opportunity to examine how I construct my gender expression, including ways I might like to alter it moving forward. Measuring 11’ x 11’, my portrait was created using a combination of acrylic, airbrush, and spray paint, and serves as a snapshot in my evolution as both an artist and Queer man. 

​Josh Katz