CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
A native of California, Philip Pirolo left his home in Joshua Tree to study music composition at the University of Southern California and fine art painting at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena. After graduating, Pirolo worked at a small design studio and later became the creative director of the influential arts and photography journal Provocateur, for which he won many design awards. The magazine's aesthetic and layout mirrored his artistic sensibility and reflected his interest in the male form, subversive artwork, and underrepresented artistic visions and explorations.
Through photography, sculpture, and painting, Pirolo's work explores issues of sexual identity, social norms, and ways in which surface, beauty, and form become potent metaphors for control, desire, and loss. He uses the body and elements of nature as instruments of formal expression and seduction to articulate not only our fragile and temporal existence but also the visceral nature of being.
Pirolo recently exhibited at the Couturier Gallery, his work is currently featured at the Melrose Project, and he is exhibiting at the gallery Antebellum in Hollywood in a show that opens February 26.
The Advocate: Why are you an artist?
Philip Pirolo: I think all art is about exploration, wonder and finding meaning. I love the quest.
What catches your eye?
A unique hair pattern, a fold of skin, life's fleshy taboos.
Tell us about your process or techniques.
When I am shooting photography, I move around a subject, looking for the vibrating line between sweetness and subversion, or between reserve and exuberance. I think that's also the balance I am working for in my sculptural work.
How do you choose your subjects?
It's not easy for me, but sometimes I approach complete strangers if I find something interesting about them.
How do you describe your work?
I think the work has always been about what is allowed and what is forbidden, what's covered and what is revealed, and the tension between them.
What makes a good photograph or artwork to you?
The best work moves or challenges you to see things in a different way.
What artists do you take inspiration from, and why?
One of the first artists to make a strong impression on me was Kandinsky. He was a musician and gave his paintings titles like Improvisation or Composition; I related to the musical aspect of the work.
I love the painting of Eakins and Richter, the design and architecture of Le Corbusier, Saarinen, and Charles and Ray Eames. Jean Arp is amazing -- every line of his sculpture is dripping with sensuality.
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Here Are Our 2024 Election Predictions. Will They Come True?
November 07 2023 1:46 PM
Meet all 37 of the queer women in this season's WNBA
April 17 2024 11:24 AM
17 Celebs Who Are Out & Proud of Their Trans & Nonbinary Kids
November 30 2023 10:41 AM
Here Are the 15 Most LGBTQ-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
November 01 2023 5:09 PM
Which State Is the Queerest? These Are the States With the Most LGBTQ+ People
December 11 2023 10:00 AM
These 27 Senate Hearing Room Gay Sex Jokes Are Truly Exquisite
December 17 2023 3:33 PM
10 Cheeky and Homoerotic Photos From Bob Mizer's Nude Films
November 18 2023 10:05 PM
42 Flaming Hot Photos From 2024's Australian Firefighters Calendar
November 10 2023 6:08 PM
These Are the 5 States With the Smallest Percentage of LGBTQ+ People
December 13 2023 9:15 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
Trans man Tee Arnold shot to death in Florida
April 17 2024 4:41 PM
Can scientific research on the causes of homosexuality be used against LGBTQ+ people?
April 17 2024 4:02 PM
George Takei releases kids' book about his childhood in internment camp
April 17 2024 3:18 PM
PLUS
ExclusivesTodrick Hall on surviving the rumors and remembering where he came from
April 17 2024 2:33 PM
Pride
Yahoo FeedHow The Pride Store celebrates National Tea Day: A tale of two brews
April 17 2024 2:14 PM
'Parents' Rights' movements forget families have the right to read LGBTQ+ books
April 17 2024 10:15 AM