pics?

“for so many young gay boys, the exploration of sexuality is as liberating as it is violating.

in our search for intimacy, we continuously find ourselves in compromising situations, controlled by older, damaged men. desperate for validation, young gay boys are almost willingly oversexualized, fetishized, and violated in a way unique to the queer experience. so conflictingly gratifying yet intrusive, these early sexual experiences mark the beginning of daily transgressions.

young bodies are constantly bared over texts, analyzed and dissected like fresh meat. exposed, felt, and used by men we do not know and who do not know us.

exposure is meant to reflect upon that feeling of violation and the guilty, contradictory pleasure gay boys like me have felt in our pursuit of intimacy. inspired by the haunting work of edvard munch, this piece is intentionally unfinished, raw, and uncomfortable.”

Michael Bae is a sophomore at USC, currently majoring in Neuroscience and minoring in Two-Dimensional Studies. He hopes to continue exploring the unspoken truths about queer culture through a feminine POC narrative, especially in a conversation dominated by traditionally masculine, white, and artificially perfect gay men.