Virtuoso Illusion: Cross Dressing and the New Media Avant-Garde

Virtuoso Illusion: Cross-Dressing and the New Media Avant-Garde is an investigation of cross-dressing (drag) as an artistic strategy in the development of avant-garde art. This 72 page catalogue publication explores how artists that cross-dress as part of their conceptual process have invigorated experimental art. The catalogue also features essays by Michael Rush, exhibition curator; Ara H. Merjian, Assistant Professor of Italian Studies and Art History at New York University, New York, NY; and exhibiting artist John Kelly, a performer, dancer, actor, and musician who began his career as part of New York’s East Village club scene during the 1980’s. The publication has both color and black and white illustrations. Artists featured in the catalogue include: Charles Atlas, Matthew Barney, Claude Cahun, Harriet “Harry” Dodge and Stanya Kahn, Marcel Duchamp, Michelle Handelman, John Kelly, Katarzyna Kozyra, Kalup Linzy, Ma Liuming, Manon, Pierre Molinier, Yasumasu Morimura, Brian O’Doherty, Ryan Trecartin, and Andy Warhol.