Entertainment
CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
August 2008 Out cover boy Pete Wentz recently teamed up with Gym Class Heroes frontman Travis McCoy for a joint exhibit of their mixed-media work, "Without You I'm Just Me," created during one long week when the pair locked themselves in Wentz's basement to make art. The opening of the Los Angeles hipster scene soiree at Gallery 1988 drew the pair's bold-name babes (Ashlee Simpson and Katy Perry, respectively) as well as Wentz-crush John Mayer and his ex Jessica Simpson, Nicole Ritchie and Joel Madden, Solange Knowles and Clark Duke -- a fitting guest list for an impressively Warholian collection. A number of the pieces eerily evoked the tradition of such queer artists as Keith Haring and David Wojnarowicz, with blunt and vulnerable pieces that confronted politics, fame and mental health in equal measure.
Out checked back in with Wentz by e-mail as his band Fall Out Boy criss-crossed the country promoting their new album, Folie Deux.
Out: How familiar are you with the AIDS art movement, and how do you see your art (especially the pieces about depression/substances) fitting into a further erosion of whats considered private?
Pete Wentz: I am a huge fan of Haring -- I feel that he crossed so many genres in such a subtle way. My mom owns stuff with Haring prints. Ill be honest, I am not super familiar with the AIDS art movement but I do see art as a medium to challenge people. It conveys messages in a way that is often so subversive, that people dont even understand that you are slamming them over the head with an idea. I think it blurs the line between the political and the personal because truly they are one and the same.
The gallery opening started off with blank walls, and ended quite differently. Was that the installation plan from the beginning? Was it a kind of performance for you?
It wasnt a plan. We were just feeling it I guess. At some point the idea of heading to heaven and ending up here by accident just popped into my head. We wanted it to feel interactive and alive. There was a pulse. It definitely felt like a performance first and foremost, so I guess that translates to everywhere. It certainly wasnt the intention but I think it may have added to the experience subtly.
A lot has changed since the time you made this art. You became a dad, and Travis went to rehab. What are your plans for making more work together?
Id love to work with Travis. We were doing new pieces until the very last second. I think Id like to do some kind of outside installation next if we could... but who knows, maybe its one of those things that will never happen again.
At the LA and Chicago Fall Out Boy shows this month you were sporting near-Bowie makeup designs. Are you over your previous complaints about that having become a clich -- or is the key to just wear more? For you right now, is makeup about making art/a statement/aesthetic?
I want to feel from a different planet (maybe a la Ziggy). Im having a mask made right now. I dont know, maybe Ill stop tomorrow, but I kind of feel like Im just getting started. It feels like Im putting on warpaint and just gets me going.
Without You I'm Just Me is open at Gallery 1988 in Los Angeles through December 24. See more at the shows blog.
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
38 Male Celebs Who Did Full Frontal Scenes
November 17 2023 5:18 PM
These are all the celebrities Who came out as LGBTQ+ in 2023
December 31 2023 12:19 PM
These Pics Prove Maluma Has Always Been a Certified Daddy
October 20 2023 1:13 PM
32 LGBTQ+ Celebs You Can Follow on OnlyFans
October 25 2023 3:15 PM
26 actors who showed bare ass in movies & TV shows
February 28 2024 1:50 PM
16 Times Celebrity Men Had to Say They Weren't Gay
February 29 2024 1:19 PM
15 Unforgettable Gay Kissing Scenes From TV & Movies
February 14 2024 10:20 AM
13 Queens Who Quit or Retired From Drag After 'RuPaul's Drag Race'
November 24 2023 10:11 AM
40 steamy celebrity Calvin Klein ads we'll always be thirsty for
January 04 2024 10:54 AM
The 15 Best LGBTQ+ Movies of 2023
December 04 2023 10:32 AM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
Meet the reality TV baddies competing on 'House of Villains' season 2
March 27 2024 3:48 PM
Meet Kristen Kish, the new out host of 'Top Chef'
March 27 2024 3:36 PM
24 albums that turn 10 years old in 2024
March 27 2024 2:43 PM
Breaking boundaries in gender-free fashion with Stuzo Clothing
March 27 2024 2:15 PM
Meet Phillip Davis, Johnny Sibilly's new BF who he just hard-launched
March 27 2024 12:49 PM
Meet Ricky & Cesar, 'Amazing Race 36's loveable gay underdog couple
March 27 2024 12:09 PM
March 27, 2024
March 27 2024 12:07 PM
Yvonne & Melissa weren't 'U-Haul lesbians' before 'Amazing Race 36'
March 27 2024 11:38 AM
Iconic comedy 'John Tucker Must Die' is getting a sequel, making Millennial gays very happy
March 27 2024 10:50 AM
'Barbie' star Hari Nef is starring in a biopic about this trans legend
March 26 2024 7:02 PM