Rory Hamovit is an artist living and working in Brooklyn, New York. He graduated from Bard College with a degree in photography and has since lived and worked in California, Iceland, and Portugal. He exhibited his work internationally, most recently at this solo show “Fortieth Parallel” which featured work that documented his retracing of the 19th-century photographer Timothy H. O’Sullivan’s travels across the American West. His work often uses humor and narrative to better analyze the conflicts of the present. He will be attending Yale for his MFA in photography starting in Fall 2018.
A Man in Love
I began making the work in the project in the wake of the 2016 US Presidential Election and the resurge of white supremacist culture in the mainstream. As a white man myself who benefited from this privilege often obviously I sought to critically examine my own place in the racial fabric of this nation by examining and deconstructing the myth of the superior Caucasian male and how he has lavishly depicted himself throughout history. As I began to review the work that I had been making, however, I came to realize my lofty aspirations of a multifaceted, depreciating protest song may have shifted trajectory. Shortly before beginning this project I had entered my first same-sex relationship and my partner, Phil, became (often due to proximity) my chosen subject matter, stand in and personal assistant. The work was still rife with anxiety and frustration but it came from a more personal place. This work showcases and examines my love for another man in the face of the terrible and seemingly unbearable. This is my love song.
To view more of Rory’s work please visit his website.