Male Figure. Gay Art. Painting & Drawing

I started painting Hylas for Pride Month.

Somewhere along the way, I began wondering whether the painting was too beautiful. Not because of the flowers, no. Because my Hylas, the male figure, was suddenly too sweet. To my own surprise, I was suddenly ashamed of him.

I'm currently working on an oil painting of Hylas among water lilies.

I paint the way I was taught—classical, Neo-Baroque, with a lot of attention to the figure, light, and atmosphere. I love the subject and I genuinely enjoy the process, so I know the painting will find its way to completion.

But the closer I get to the finish line, the more I start asking myself questions. Should I stay fully committed to that language? Or should I introduce something unexpected—something abstract, something that belongs more to the present?

Sometimes I wonder whether the question is artistic, or whether it's really about demand and relevance.

Curious if other artists here ever find themselves caught between what they love making and what they think the world wants to see.

Narcissus and the Daffodil by Dimitri Ross

Male figure. Sitting by Dimitri Ross

Male figure. Sitting by Dimitri Ross

Male figure with a glass of wine by Dimitri Ross

Ok.. I want to share this because I’ve been thinking about it for quite some time 😄

I was recently in Florence, spending a lot of time with all those beautiful paintings in churches.. and also with this fresco by Bronzino. It's the Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence (in Basilica di San Lorenzo).

And… I swear… parts of it feel like a... very beautiful Renaissance version of a gay sauna 👀👀

All these all these buff and sweaty men, provocative poses, touching each other, looking at each other… but at the same time everything is very religious and official... Such a strange feeling looking at it in a church....

It made me think... You know, art historians always like to say “we don’t know” about artists like Bronzino if they were gay… Then you look at what they were painting and... really? we don't know?

And another thing is... There is this Cosimo I de' Medici, super powerful, very married (!), tons of children… He commissioned this painting, paid for it. And he himself posed nude for Bronzino. I just ask myself – no, not if a man married to a woman can be gay... In many places it's the only possible way of living, right? No, I wonder if somebody can be so deeply immersed in that kind of art world… and still be totally “straight”, not even "a bit curious"? Or am I projecting?

Here is the painting I am talking about. Impressive, isn't it?

I don't know if I can share my video here, about me trying to figure out this painting... I'll just try – if anyone is curious, here it is: https://youtu.be/i7VvYSfQHjs

Untitled. Original charcoal on paper. Inspired by backlit male figures in paintings from Dutch Golden age.

Let’s be honest: we all know why we stare at Saint Sebastian paintings 😉 But there is actually a deep theological reason why the Church adopted the "perfect" Greek nude male body.

On my Youtube channel, Notes from the Traveling Painter, I published a short visual essay: "Figurative Art From Greek Nude Men to Christian Saints." Watch it here: https://youtu.be/IXsLbRwlNqM 🏛️✝️

I was gonna call it "All I want for Xmas", but now Christmas is over so... let's call it "A Very Happy Birthday" :)

My Etsy shop, just in case... :)

Abstract Male Figure Art – Symphony for Two in Tempera and Soft Pastel by Dimitri Ross

This piece began with a photo and ended as something much more personal. Well, I guess you can call it a self-portrait :) Yes. I create custom figurative drawings celebrating the male form — discreet, respectful and made just for you.

Instinct by Dimitri Ross

Charcoal on white paper

Genesis of Bloom

Baroque of the North in charcoal