Two illustrators look at naked men

By Mary Dickie

One 800 Gallery, the new Dundas West artspace run by Toronto fashion photographer George Whiteside, launched a hot and hilarious exhibition called The Naughty Show just in time for Pride Week.
The show features the work of two acclaimed local illustrators, Anita Kunz and Maurice Vellekoop, and the theme is… naked men. “Where are all the masterpieces in art history that depict nude men?” asked Kunz, who then proceeded to create 100 exquisitely beautiful drawings of famous men as she imagined them naked. Everyone from Sigmund Freud (interestingly, not that well endowed) to Elvis Presley to Johnny Depp is pictured in Kunz’s series, which she’s also made into a book.
Meanwhile, Vellekoop’s Pin-ups series features cheeky, gorgeously coloured erotic illustrations of cultural figures like Gainsborough’s Blue Boy and Star Trek’s Mr. Spock—apparently one of the artist’s early crushes. The Naughty Show runs to July 25, and it’s not for children!