Hanky Panky: Kent Monkman

The podcast episode is about a Canadian artist named Kent Monkman and his controversial painting entitled Hanky Panky. Monkman is a two-spirited queer artist who creates realistic grand scale history-like paintings using only acrylic paints. His paintings often appropriate old history paintings and switch the power dynamics in favor of indigenous people. Hanky Panky depicts a half-naked Justin Trudeau being mocked and laughed at by indigenous women, with Monkman's alter ego, Miss Chief Eagle Testicle, about to spank him. The painting addresses the treatment of indigenous women by the government and aims to make viewers uncomfortable and address prevalent issues. Despite controversy, Monkman believes his art should evoke emotion and provoke discussion. He redefines the use of appropriation, sexuality, and gender expression in his art as a political statement. Hello, everyone. Welcome back to the Art Corner. I am your host, Charlee Grimes. Today is June 11th, and this episode is entitled Hanky Panky. Now, if you're new to this podcast, welcome. This is my podcast where each episode I dive deep into an influential art piece or artwork and explain the ins and outs of the art world. Let's get into it. I have been receiving many, many comments from my fellow Canadian listeners about Kent Monkman. What are you going to talk about Kent Monkman? Talk about Kent Monkman. You need to talk about Kent Monkman. My listeners, today is the episode. Since this month is Pride Month, I thought it would only be fitting to talk about a queer artist. Shout out to the gays. I will be talking about a controversial painting by Kent Monkman entitled Hanky Panky. I know, a very, very odd title. Now, if you haven't heard of Kent Monkman before, he is probably the most influential contemporary Indigenous artist of our time. Monkman is a two-spirited Canadian queer artist who's been prevalent for a few years. Now, it is important to recognize their two-spirited identities as both men and women. However, throughout this podcast, I will be using he pronouns while referring to Monkman. Most of his earlier works were originally abstract paintings. However, now he has moved on to create these enormous, like, I mean, enormous realistic grand scale history-like paintings. These paintings are absolutely beautiful and the level of detail in them is incredible considering he only uses acrylic paints, which, if you didn't know, is a lot more difficult to achieve a realistic and smooth style with that sort of paint compared to oil. Now, his paintings are extraordinary. In fact, that they're all across Canada and even a few in the Met Museum, which everyone knows is a very prestigious museum. Fair warning, all of Kent Monkman's paintings are very erotic and political. So, warning rednecks, you will hate him, but I love him. So, I don't care. Monkman's paintings often appropriate old history paintings and would switch the power dynamics and subjects in favor of indigenous people, almost as a way to glorify indigenous history. My most favorite of these paintings is the anatomy lesson painting versus his own creation, which he entitled The Examination. I won't go into too much detail about it because it will take too long for this episode, but he appropriates the anatomy lesson and switches out the main subject on the table for an indigenous person. It is quite funny in a way and is exactly the sort of appropriation and juxtaposition used in all of his paintings. So, I strongly urge you to search up the difference between the two because it is quite satirical in that way. It's sort of a way he rewrites history to change the narrative and point out major issues. Moving on, for you, my fine listeners, to understand the impact and true meaning behind the controversial Hanky Panky painting, I must first talk about Kent Monkman's persona. Monkman uses an alternate persona in many of his paintings. This persona is named Mischief Eagle Testicle. Yeah, you heard me right. Mischief Eagle Testicle. Mischief is a version of himself dressed in drag. Yeah, drag. Like the makeup, the high heels, almost burlesque type outfits. According to Kent Monkman, Mischief is a figure used to challenge gender roles. She is a powerful figure used to disturb the historical narrative and free refreshed sexuality in indigenous people. Now that you know about her, it's time to move on to what everyone's been waiting for, the painting analysis. Now, the title alone, Hanky Panky, is scandalous enough. Yet, the actual subject of this painting was so disturbing and political that Monkman had to issue a formal apology and completely remove the painting from his website and auction. Bear with me for the description of this painting because, man, it is interesting. The main subject of this painting is a half-naked Justin Trudeau bent over on all fours with his bare ass out. He is surrounded by indigenous women in a circle who are all laughing at him. To the left of the painting are old Canadian political figures looking down at him in disgust. One of them is John A. MacDonald. In the foreground of the painting lies a half-naked RCMP officer with his bare ass out and his head face-planted on the ground. Now, of course, it wouldn't be a Kent Monkman painting without Miss Chief Eagle Teskel front and center with a large headdress on and high heels. Miss Chief stands to the right of Justin Trudeau with her hands covered in red paint, held up high and in front of Justin Trudeau's behind, clearly indicating that she's about to spank him. Yeah. It is quite clear now, obviously, why this painting was so controversial. Not only did this painting enrage white people, but also First Nations people, many of whom believed it was mocking and degrading, and the act of Justin Trudeau was clearly not consensual. I understand the way people feel. It definitely does seem that way from the outside. But this painting was created to represent how Indigenous women feel like they're being treated by the government. It took me a while to realize what was going on in the painting. In fact, I believed it was quite disturbing at first, but it's a political statement. Indigenous women feel like they are being slapped in their asses and laughed at by the government who are doing nothing about this epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women. It's a political statement addressing missing and murdered Indigenous women. He reverses the role of victim and victimizer. It's satirical. It's supposed to be overly sexual and humiliating. It's supposed to make the viewer feel uncomfortable. If it makes you unsettled or uncomfortable, that's a good thing. Kent Monkman is changing the role, subverting expectations, using juxtaposition as a way to point out prevalent issues. Kent Monkman is special in a way that he's not afraid to use sexual or gruesomeness in his paintings to get people's attention, which is something I believe that many artists need to step up. Although he had to issue an apology for his painting of Justin Trudeau getting spanked and laughed at, I don't really think he was sorry. I believe Kent Monkman did this on purpose because it's probably the only way to get people to talk about the missing and murdered Indigenous women. Yes, this painting is gruesome and no one would want to hang it in their house, but art doesn't need to be tasteful or basic. Art needs to evoke an emotion, and that's what Kent Monkman wanted with this piece. By changing the power dynamics, it almost makes your stomach turn in an uncomfortable way. He wants to make the government feel just like how those Indigenous women feel, uncomfortable, exposed, laughed and mocked at. That's the point. Anyone who doesn't understand that does not know anything about art. Kent Monkman is an Indigenous artist who is redefining the use of appropriation, sexuality, gender expression in his art. His art is all a political statement. That's the point. It's satire. Oversexualized, gruesome, and uncomfortable. That's who he is as an artist to change the way people view Indigenous art and political issues. That was Kent Monkman's work entitled Hanky Panky. Thank you everyone for tuning in on this podcast episode of The Art Corner. I am your host, Charlie Grimes. Thank you and have a wonderful night.