I often have people say to me " you ought do do paintings of Tillie from the funhouse in Asbury, I bet you'd sell a lot of them" I think there's enough Tillie memorabilia going around. Maybe too much.
I felt a need to express another aspect of Asbury Park's history, perhaps a less romantic period. From the 70's to the early 90's A.P. the beach area was dominated by adult industries, adult movie houses and strip clubs to independent sex workers. A facet of the city many would prefer to sweep under the rug and forget. I thought I'd do a few pieces that were a tongue in cheek look at that era. A tribute to not just to the time, but to those who worked it.
Whether you are secretly attracted or publicly appalled by the sex industry of Asbury it should be acknowledged. If you look at the Times Square of today it becomes even more magnificent when compared to the same neighborhood 20 years ago before it's "renaissance."
I tried to keep the art fun and whimsical, with a poignant criticism of "what is obscene?" Using classical Renaissance nudes juxtaposed with lurid advertising phrases, the paintings challenge the viewer into deciding if content or context make nudity obscene. The conservative right is quick to stamp "pornographic" on contemporary art, I thought why not try to take what is deemed as "pornographic" and turn it into contemporary art?