We Who Feel Differently

We Who Feel Differently is a multi-part art project composed of a series of illustrations, posters, a video installation and an Internet archive (in progress). The work investigates the cultural, social, political and legislative history and development of issues regarding sexual orientation and gender identity, based on dozens of interviews conducted with LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer) communities in Colombia, South Korea, Norway and the U.S. The work attempts to create a comparative platform to critically discuss the notions of representation, citizenship and democracy from the perspective of sexual and identity politics in different cultural and legislative environments.

What are “LGBTQ rights” and why fight to achieve them? What does equality of rights mean in the context of "diverse sexualities"? How should sexual equality be discussed? Is the implementation of the law enough? Is it possible to change traditional cultural prejudices in favor of a more inclusive society?

In recent times some countries have considered the implementation of equality laws to respond to discriminatory environments against LGBTQ identities. Some months ago, Colombia’s Constitutional Court decided in favor of the rights of same sex couples. The U.S. has witnessed the endorsement of “Proposition 8” in California delaying a slow process to attain equality of civil rights and awakening a debate about marriage as a (human) right. Norway, on the other hand, has been a leading country in implementing progressive policies in regard to these issues, yet the recent debates on gay and lesbian rights to adopt and marry attest that there is a cultural divide with respect to sexual politics. The situation in South Korea is precarious despite the work of organizations that shed light on the importance of "equality." Rights are constantly violated and often these violations remain unpunished.

The presentation of We Who Feel Differently in Shanghai’s Other Gallery includes a series of eleven large scale black and white illustrations based on iconic representations of diverse (sexual) identities, a series of twenty text posters that construct a poem using key words and concepts associated with the LGBTQ movement/struggle around the world, a few edited video interviews with activists in Norway and Colombia, and a text written by Chinese scholar Hongwei Bao, who thoroughly creates a historical context to understand the formation and status of the LGBTQ movement in China. Together, all of these pieces aim at constructing a space for reflection about the important yet difficult task of achieving equality of rights in countries with traditional religious and political systems.

We Who Feel Differently is my attempt as a gay man, a gay citizen and a gay artist to understand the complexity of the cultural and political discussion around LGBTQ identities, which has largely defined my place in the world and to some extent the formation of my own subjectivity.

Having grown up in the 1980s in Colombia, a conservative and Catholic country, I had to conceal my sexual orientation in school and at work. I was verbally bullied and often made fun of because of being a “faggot.” I learned to ignore this discrimination and, at the time, understood it as being “normal” and inevitable. I was in fact “different.” Today, I think politically and have come to strongly reject that experience of my childhood and adolescence. Unfortunately, my story is not unique; it is a story that continues to take place every day everywhere in the world. We Who Feel Differently can not repair the psychological or physical damage caused by such erratic behavior but it allows me to contribute a clear personal and political position about the need to denounce, reject and insist on the respect of difference, which is a fundamental right.

Lastly I would like to thank the following people who have made this project possible: Arne Skaug Olsen at Visningsrommet USF, Bergen, Norway and the New York State Council for the Arts for their generous financial support; Nicolás Consuegra and Mónica Páez of Tangrama Gráfica, with whom I collaborated in making the posters; Humberto Junca for making the illustrations; all the interviewees in Norway and Colombia for sharing their experience and letting me help to further communicate their ideas and common struggle; Kay Saida and Juan Carlos Posada for their invaluable assistance; and Other Gallery in Shanghai for their interest in my work.

Exhibition	We Who Feel Differently - Carlos Motta Solo Show

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