A new cast of characters with special meaning

I've raided my ever-growing stash of Victorian photos and am working on a series that continues my exploration of gender roles. But, this time, it's men who are undergoing a gender bending.

I wanted to explore the stigma attached to being gay during the Victorian era, but do it in a humorous way. For example, the titles on the pieces above are "Geoffrey believed in the power of accessorizing"(left) and "Charles wondered whether the sleeves were a bit much."

The series is tentatively titled, Victor Victorian and is dedicated to my late brother David, who would have been 58 today. He was an early AIDS victim and one of the warmest-hearted people in the world. I've written about him in the past, noting that the drawing table in my studio was a gift from him when I was in college. The plan is to donate part of the money from sales to Aids Volunteers of Cincinnati (AVOC).

I know these new collages would have made David laugh. Out loud.