8-Bit Superstar: The Ingenious Art of Jude Buffum

If something of cultural importance exists in the world, chances are Jude Buffum has pixelated it, added his own hilariously incredible perspective, and sent it back out into the world even more awesome than it started out. Everything is fair game: cult movies, beloved video games, politicians, indie rock bands. Nothing is safe. Nothing! And, by God, if I could afford to own every single piece of art Jude Buffum has ever made, I would. I am totally smitten.

Jude graduated from the Tyler School of Art in 2001 with a BFA in Graphic Arts and Design, where he went on to teach design and typography courses for five years. After that he taught illustration at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia for several years. While he was a part of the design and illustration duo Headcase Design (2002–2007), Jude designed books for such pop-culture phenomena as the Broadway show “Wicked” and HBO’s “The Sopranos”, as well as the best-selling book The Baby Owner’s Manual, which he also illustrated. Other clients include the New York Times, SONY, UPS, Target, Square/Enix, Brooks Running, Courtney Love, the US Postal Service, Disney, Publix, and Toyota/SCION. Jude’s design and illustration have received awards from Graphis, Communication Arts, AIGA, Print Magazine, Society of Illustrators, 3x3, and American Illustration, and his non-commercial work has been exhibited internationally.

In an interview with Tribe Magazine in 2013, Jude Buffum explains his love of pixels:

What I love about working with pixels is that they bring this whole language of gaming into the art, and that gives me a lot of options to play with those metaphors, whether it's scoring points, dialogue boxes, item menus, status meters, that sort of thing. So usually I am looking at which of the concepts would best be exploited by the subject matter. The other thing I love about it is the element of nostalgia. People my age, give or take ten years, can look at it and immediately we're all taken to this very specific place in our memories. For me, it's such a pleasant memory it's almost euphoric. But then I take that almost childlike state of mind, and place it in a modern context with very adult themes like violence or sex or political corruption, and that juxtaposition creates very intense feeling. 

Back in 2010, Jude also helped out in the marriage equality fight with a piece entitled Civil Disunion. It was part of Manifest Equality's art exhibit featuring a diverse array of visual artists to raise awareness for the cause of equal rights for all Americans.

Be sure to check out Jude's amazing Website where you can peruse his latest works and purchase prints, t-shirts, throw pillows and more! Also, go to his incredible Flickr page for more of the risque artwork! Also, be sure to watch the videos at the bottom of the article!

Click on any picture to enlarge!

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Watch: Arcade Fire - We Exist Video!

Arcade Fire has really outdone themselves with the new video for We Exist. Honestly, I never expected such a touching portrayal of LGBT youth from Arcade Fire, much less Spider-Man's Andrew Garfield. If you don't already have a copy of Reflektor, you should go buy one now. It's their strongest work since Funeral.

Watch: Tteokbokki (2014) Short Film

Tteokbokki charmingly follows a dinner date between Arthur and Liam, two college age men who are both a bit awkward. One completely inexperienced, the other considerably quirky. Written and Directed by Kyle Minton who plays Arthur with an original song by Logan Ritchey who plays Liam. This short film is definitely worth 10 minutes of your time!

Watch: Limited Partnership Documentary to Premiere at LA Film Festival in June 2014!

Never before has a movie trailer left me feeling so outraged. Limited Partnership looks to be one of the most astonishingly emotional and completely engrossing documentaries that has ever been made. It shows the struggle of one of the first legally married couples in the US, all the way back in 1975, to gain legal recognition from the government. Their fight became the very first federal lawsuit seeking equal treatment for a same-sex marriage in U.S. history.

The documentary will make its official premiere at the 2014 Los Angeles Film Festival this June. It has also been chosen by PBS to be part of the 2014/2015 Independent Lens series, tentatively airing in June of 2015. Be sure to watch the trailer below.

Here's the official synopsis:

Limited Partnership is the love story between Filipino-American Richard Adams and his Australian husband, Tony Sullivan. In 1975, thanks to a courageous county clerk in Boulder, CO, Richard and Tony were one of the first same-sex couples in the world to be legally married. Richard immediately filed for a green card for Tony based on their marriage. But unlike most heterosexual married couples who easily file petitions and obtain green cards, Richard received a denial letter from the Immigration and Naturalization Service stating, “You have failed to establish that a bona fide marital relationship can exist between two faggots.” Outraged at the tone, tenor and politics of this letter and to prevent Tony’s impending deportation, the couple

sued the U.S. government. This became the first federal lawsuit seeking equal treatment for a same-sex marriage in U.S. history.

Over four decades of legal challenges, Richard and Tony figured out how to maintain their sense of humor, justice and whenever possible, their privacy. Their personal tale parallels the history of the LGBT marriage and immigration equality movements, from the couple signing their marriage license in Colorado, to the historic U.S. Supreme Court rulings on gay marriage in June 2013. Limited Partnership celebrates Richard and Tony’s long path towards justice and citizenship as they challenge the traditional definitions of “spouse” and “family.” This tenacious story of love, marriage and immigration equality is as precedent setting as it is little known until now.

Richard and Tony’s personal journey is set against 40 years of historical and political clashes. These critical moments in history are explored through the use of television news clips, newspaper headlines, radio announcements, Tony and Richard’s personal photos and letters, interviews, and animated graphics. Through artful juxtaposition, these sequences dynamically contrast Richard and Tony’s personal battle with the evolution of America’s values, the LGBT and mainstream marriage equality movement, and modifications in U.S. immigration policy.

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Watch: Big Gay Love Trailer Finally Released!

TLA Releasing finally posted the Big Gay Love Trailer! Directed by Ringo Le and starring Jonathan Lisecki and Nicholas Brendon of Buffy the Vampire Hunter fame, Big Gay Love is a comedy about Bob, a successful but insecure party planner who desperately searches for love on his own terms in body image–obsessed Los Angeles. Enter hunky Andy who turns his world upside-down. It is hard for the overweight Bob to believe that Andy could really love him and he self-sabotages the burgeoning relationship. Hopefully, love will win out in the end.

For now, you can see Big Gay Love in limited run at:
Camelot Theater, Palm Springs: May 23

Downtown Independent, Los Angeles: June 6
Landmark Theaters Hillcrest, San Diego: July 16
NYC: July 2014
San Francisco: July 2014

Exclusive Podcast: Treklenburg Episode #19

Hosts Michael Earle and Molly Jay hilariously talk all things Star Trek.
This week, it's Star Trek Generations Watch Along Part 1! When Michael says hit play now, hit play on your Generations DVD or Netflix stream and watch Generations along with the crew as they make their hilarious, yet insightful, commentary on the movie, behind the scenes tidbits, and anything else that comes to mind. And be sure to tune in next week for Generations Part 2!

Original broadcasts of Treklenburg are Monday nights at 8pm EST on www.pmcradio.org.



How to Subscribe!
iTunes: itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/trekl…ings/id797015608
RSS Feed: www.podcastrevolution.com/viewpodcast.php?pid=3578

Monday Morning Dance Party: Little Dragon "Nabuma Rubberband" Album Stream!

Little Dragon's new album Nabuma Rubberband is due out tomorrow, May 13th! But, thanks to the magic of the internet, you can preview the entire record right now!

AdamMaleBlog Exclusive: An Interview w/ Artist Michael Breyette

I happened upon Micahel Breyette's art for the first time as a happy accident. I was doing a google image search for "gay Halloween art" and out of the thousands of images on the page, one piece of work really stood out. It was a beautiful, muscular man crawling out of a body of water onto a rock. Not exactly Halloween, but it really struck me, so I clicked it. And ultimately, I wound up ogling one astonishing work of art after another on Michael Breyette's website and fantastic blog.

What really makes Breyette's art shine is his ability to give us a glimpse into the intimate lives of men when they think no one else is looking. Sometimes tender. Sometimes erotic. Often heartwarming. Always interesting. His work has been used on almost a dozen gay romance novel covers, featured in numerous gay erotica compilations, and compiled into two books: Summer Moved On and Seasons of Love. Though a lot of his work can be considered erotica, stereotyping him into one single genre seems like a total disservice to his enormous talent. His work is capable of portraying such warmth and depth of human emotion, that it easily transcends simple classification.

Here's a bit of his online bio:

Michael Breyette is a self-taught artist. Like many other fellow artists, he does not recall when he began drawing. But having started at a very young age, he soon realized he had an aptitude for it. Born in rural upstate NY, a region that can sometimes parallel the stereotype of the red-neck South, his earliest works were often of an escapist nature and typically fell within the realms of science fiction or fantasy. But as his sexuality developed he often felt the need to include female subjects in his creations. This allowed him the freedom to paint his scantily clad men without inviting too many unwanted questions from his conservative family.

Currently, Michael has a piece in the exhibit Stroke: From Under the Mattress to the Museum Walls at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art in New York. He has a show coming up at the Lyman-Eyer Gallery in Provincetown MA from July 11-23 with an opening reception the night of July 11 from 7-9pm. And you can always find his work at Gallery XO in Wilton Maners, FL.  Despite all of this, Michael was kind enough to give us a bit of his time and answer our questions!

Q: I really love that most of your art has its own somewhat elaborate back story! How much fun is it to come up with those? Was there a “eureka” moment when you decided to start including them?
Michael: While I may initially had begun my male figurative work as a way to express my passion for the beautiful male physique, it soon evolved into more. I wanted to express certain emotions and capture moments. The men in my work aren't there just to say, 'look how sexy and amazing the male body is' but rather they have become my story tellers, my messengers. That's how I gradually started adding the narratives to each piece. I try to give a little insight as to what story the painting is telling in my mind. However, I usually try to keep it basic and simple and let the viewer come up with their own, as well.

Q: Your Halloween and Christmas themed art is among my favorite in your collection. But, I noticed no Valentine’s Day! Is that a conscience decision?
Michael: The Halloween and Christmas pieces are among my favorites to do as well. They open up whole different realms of ideas and scenes that I can draw from. I never really thought much of doing an annual Valentine's Day piece. I guess partly because I usually do several romantic pieces throughout the year anyway, a Valentine's theme wouldn't be that much of a deviation.

Q: Your art is used on a lot of gay romance/pulp romance novels!Do you have a favorite book or title? Do any of the books just make you shake your head and giggle?
Michael: To be honest I haven't had the chance to read many of them. I am hoping to check them out this summer. But I do enjoy the ones I have read.

Q: What was the inspiration for Holy Trinity? Did the piece ruffle any feathers as your friends feared?
Michael: The concept floated around in my head for quite some time. There is such a volatile history between religions, even hatred due to differing beliefs, arbitrary made up beliefs not facts.

 

Holy Trinity

Q: Who are some of the working artists you currently admire?
Michael: First I have to say I admire anyone who is putting their art out there. It's a personal thing and it's not easy to do. I also admire artists who manage to find the balance of staying true to themselves while pursuing fine art as an actual source of income. It's hard not to be influenced by what sells vs. what you truly want to create.

Q: Your bio says some of your earliest works are sci-fi and fantasy related! Are there particular comics, graphic novels, movies, video games, etc…you still geek out to?
Michael: I love a good sci-fi movie or show, anything from Lord of the Rings to Captain America.

Q: As you often point out on your blog, you do seem to have a penchant for cowboys? Any idea where this comes from?
Michael: I didn't grow up around cowboys, so it's nothing like that. I think the appeal just comes from the rugged outdoorsy aspects of cowboys. There's a connection to nature and the wild, a free spirit sensibility that just oozes from the cowboy mystique. Add a sexy hat, tight jeans, a touch of leather, a few days stubble...woof!

Q: You do a great job of bringing freshness and originality into gay erotic art while throwing a loving, wink and nod to the works that came before. How important is it to know the history of a particular genre?
Michael: When I started I didn't have any knowledge of other artists that did 'gay art'. I may have heard of Tom of Finland and probably had seen the work of Steve Walker. As I got deeper into the genre I started learning about my contemporaries and predecessors. So I see both sides. On one hand being too aware of what has come before might be discouraging. I might have said to myself, 'this has been done before'. On the other hand, being aware of the pioneers helps place your own point of view in context.

Q: Unicorns…or narwhals? Who would win in a fight?
Michael: Uhm...I don't think unicorns are real. So I gotta go with a narwahl.

Be sure to visit Michael Breyette's Website, Facebook Page, and Blog!

Watch: Midnights With Adam (2013) Short Film

After engaging in an anonymous sexual act, J. Harper Lee, a detached and newly out-of-the closet young man, arrives to a soirée planned by his best friend, Annie. Throughout the night, as he catches up with close acquaintances and struggles to hold back his feelings for his straight friend, Danny, Harper agonizes to build a façade of belonging in a world that is not meant for him. As midnight approaches, Harper exploits himself in a brief sexual encounter to mitigate his loneliness and disconnection only to realize that he must come to terms with his identity in order to find his place in the world.

Written and Directed by Yudho Aditya, with some writing credit going to Sarah Xie. Made on a budget of just $2000. Midnight in Adam was first released in 2013 and just recently put up on sites like Vimeo for the rest of us to enjoy! This is 30 minutes well spent.