Artist Michael Young
Congratulations to Michael Young for earning his place as a finalist in the 6th Edition!
Who are you?
My name’s Michael Young and I am a photographer/lens-based artist. I grew up in and currently live about a half hour north of New York City in Scarsdale, NY. In addition to being an artist, I have been teaching Spanish for the past 18 years. I graduated from Yale University with a BA in Spanish Language and Literature but also took art classes as an undergraduate. During my senior year I studied photography with Catherine Opie. After graduating from Yale I spent time working in New York City in the fashion photography industry, but after 9/11 I decided to pursue a degree in education. For many years I focused exclusively on my teaching career, but about ten years ago I decided to return to photography and lens-based work.
“Reclining Cowboy” (Finalist Work)
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
What inspired you to begin utilising photography as a medium over others?
When I arrived at Yale I signed up for a drawing class during my first semester and soon realized that it was not my medium. I was so embarrassed by my work that I refused to retrieve my final portfolio of works from the Art and Architecture building at the end of the fall. I’m just fortunate that the models who posed nude during class never saw my poorly rendered sketches of them!
“Leather On Leather”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
Can you discuss the inspiration and thought process behind "Reclining Cowboy"?
Sure. “Reclining Cowboy, March” was one of the first images I created for my series Hidden Glances. During Covid, but not inspired by the pandemic, I had begun to work with vintage gay pornographic calendars. For a few months I experimented with different cutouts and how I could use the materials as a way to visualize my feelings about the years I spent in the closet. I was excited by the work I was making but something was lacking. I had a Eureka moment one night when I was boxing up my work and I happened to place the background of one image I had cut out on top of another month’s image and I had this really neat overlay that caught my eye.
“Stripes, a Tank, and a Towel”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
"Reclining Cowboy" seems to be part of a series of works, can you talk about the series?
Hidden Glances is a visual reflection of the years before I came out, which was a really tough period in my life. While I knew I was gay, I still wasn’t ready to say it and live my life truthfully. I wanted to look at other guys and be noticed by them, yet at the same time I wanted to live comfortably in the false belief that perhaps I could be straight. Hidden Glances play with the push and pull that existed for me while I was coming out to family and friends. At that point in my life there was a lot of hiding, denying, and trying to avert my gaze to avoid any association of being gay.
“Three Guys”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
What is the message you want to send your audience with your work?
Despite the homoerotic nature of the photographs, I do hope that my audience–in particular those who do not identify as queer–connect with the struggles that so many of us go through in life when it comes to self acceptance, personal discovery, and those secrets we keep from others.
“The Alps”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
What do you feel is your most successful piece to date? Why?
Within the Hidden Glances series, I would say that “Out on the Range, January” is my most successful piece. I believe what makes this image work so well is the balance between the indoor studio figure which exists in the background with the silhouette that stands so confidently outdoors.
“Out On The Range”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
Can you talk about your biggest learning experience during the process of creating your photographs?
This is such a great question. When I think back to this series, I think I learned how to be more patient with the process of creating work. This series started as an experimental exercise, and I had no intention of sharing it with the world. In fact, I created a separate Instagram account for it and it wasn’t until it was a finalist for Klompching Fresh 2021 that I added it to my website.
“Statue”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
Can you discuss your biggest success since starting your artistic journey?
It was the call I received from Debra Klomp Ching of Klompching Gallery in New York City letting me know that my work was selected as a finalist for their FRESH 2021 show. Being recognized by Debra and her husband and co-owner of the gallery Darren Ching was a tremendous honor. Their continued support has meant so much to me.
“Crown of Bougainvillea”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
What projects are you working on currently? Can you discuss them?
I am still working on Hidden Glances. I have a stack of calendars to go through, and so the plan right now is to make more work this summer. Recently I have added some new images to my website and am beginning to play around a bit more with the silhouettes in the sense that sometimes I won’t remove all evidence of skin from the cutout.
In addition to Hidden Glances, I am returning to my long term project that explores gender roles, masculinity and femininity, and life in western Kentucky. I began this project about ten years ago, and it has and continues to take on different titles and identities as I continue to build the series and make new photographs. This past spring I realized that the project was much more personal than I had originally set out to make it so I am working on reviewing my archive of images. Additionally I was finally able to return to western Kentucky earlier this summer where I made new photographs that I’m hoping to begin rolling out this fall.
“Palm Leaves”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
What is your dream project or piece you hope to accomplish?
While I have a lot of ideas for future projects and aspirations for myself as a photographer, I currently don’t have a dream project. As I move through making bodies of work, other ideas begin to come to me and I get excited about other possible series. I’m always thinking about and looking for those threads that connect what I’m creating visually. Right now I’m focused on making some more work for Hidden Glances and then moving onto other projects both new and ongoing.
“Karate Chop”
Archival Pigment Print
By Michael Young
Lastly, I like to ask everyone what advice they would give to their fellow artists/photographers, what is your advice?
Stay true to who you are as an artist but also listen to others who are willing to help you out because working in isolation makes for a boring practice.
To view more of Michael Young’s work