FEATURED ARTIST: Jude Ribisi
PRONOUNS: He/him/his
MEDIUM OF CHOICE: Digital collage, digital photography, sourced selfies, and art modeling.
Software designer by day, homoerotic artist by night, JUDE RIBISI stands out not only because of his beautiful artwork, but also because of his spirit of collaboration with other queer artists.
He got his start in homoerotic art when he started art-modeling about 10 years ago. “Modeling for these brilliant and open-minded queer artists, such as Robert Siegelman and Newbold Bohemia, influenced me to get behind the camera myself.”
More recently, we have a seen a shift in his work to something a little more layered. As much as he loves his photography work, finding the time and the models to shoot was a challenge. Feeling a desperation to create, he began playing around and landed on the selfie:pattern pieces that we have been seeing lately. It started with him simply adding graphical block elements to his his old photos and they gradually developed into layering intricate patterns with bold colors. As for the subjects he chooses, he told us, “I mainly use Instagram to find subjects, so when I come across a profile with quality selfies that display a confidence or openness, I reach out. It’s interesting how much our selfies say about how we view ourselves, especially with the kinds of images subjects tend to send, so it’s fun for me to change the lens these images are viewed through.”
A lot of his subjects are fellow artists he has developed friendships with, often trading portraits in each other’s style, which has been another huge source of inspiration for him. “Art has a hugely important role in the queer community. It’s one of the only ways we can’t be silenced. Art is our way to express our individual queerness. We see ourselves, our friends, our lovers, our queer family depicted in art, and I believe that has the power to empower and connect us.” Gaining motivation from these artists and being able to share and discuss his own work has allowed him to develop and grow artistically.
You can keep up to date with his work on his instagram (@juderibisi), but he has often been a victim of instagram censorship, so some of his work posted there has added elements which stylistically censor the artwork, which are still absolutely beautiful. However, you can find the work as it was originally meant to be seen in the gallery below, and even more of both the selfie:pattern series and his photography on his brand new website. (www.juderibisi.com)
And he is always looking for that next collaboration, so if you like his work, and are interested working together (whether it is posing for him or having him pose for you) just reach out and say hi! I know everyone here at Doable Guys is looking forward to seeing whatever work you produce together!
