GI Joe
Series of paintings which explore the what Barthes would term the mythology of GI Joe.
The images focus on the creation and perception of the North American masculine identity as reflected in the physique, uniforms and costumes of various models of GI Joe action figures. The viewer is faced with the essential paradox of North American boys establishing male gender roles by playing with dolls.
Many of the paintings begin with images appropriated from 1960s era GI Joe colouring books. The others involve heat transfered photos taken of figures from my own extensive GI Joe Adventure Team collection.
