This is the book which accompanies Sydney artist Jim Anderson’s latest, career-spanning exhibition, Lampoon: An Historical Art Trajectory, (part of the 2011 Mardi Gras festival), and it showcases work from 40 years, and the many scandals which were caused by them. As the art director for the infamous 1970s London-based Oz magazine, and later through his work in California and Sydney, Anderson’s satirical art has often landed him in hot water. The ‘Homosexual’ issue of Oz was the first time there’d ever been a nationally-circulated magazine with two gay men kissing on the cover, with just a few months later, the infamous ‘Schoolkids’ issue, with “naked blue lesbians” on the cover, which led to the obscenity trial. In 1971 Anderson, along with fellow Oz editors Felix Dennis and Richard Neville, were found guilty of breaching obscenity laws and briefly jailed before sanity prevailed and the case was overturned on appeal. Back in Sydney from the mid-’90s onwards, Anderson's work continued with a rather queer bent, including photographs of the Sydney Gay Nudists group and The Belles of St Mary’s, a satirical attack on Cardinal George Pell and the “coterie of young gay acolytes” who were rumoured to be in his inner circle. As Anderson says : “There’s always an element of homosexuality to my work, although this is not an entirely gay-themed exhibition. I think, as a homosexual, the most important thing you can do is be out all the time. That way mainstream society can realise there’s nothing to be scared of.” Paperback, 63 pages, Published 2011 |
