Salman Toor

Salman Toor, born in 1983, is an American painter raised in Pakistan. He creates paintings that depict the imagined lives of young gay men, often of Asian descent. His artwork explores various themes, including the treatment of brown men, the experiences of young people in public and private spaces, intimate gay connections, and the impact of technology on daily life.

Toor acknowledges that his childhood experiences in Pakistan, particularly the influence of Pakistani advertisements and glamorous images of women from his mother’s magazines, continue to shape his work. He also draws inspiration from paintings of the Baroque, Neoclassical, and Rococo eras, finding inspiration in artists such as Van Dyck, Peter Paul Rubens, Caravaggio, and Watteau.

After initially exploring Renaissance and classical Indian painting, Toor took a creative leap in 2015 when he started experimenting with cartoon-like images of his friends. These distinctive characters, characterized by their pointy noses, began to gather attention and recognition. It was clear that Toor was onto something.

His big breakthrough came in 2020 when the Whitney presented his works side by side with early European masterworks, highlighting his unapologetic depiction of queer subjects next to paintings he’d studied all his life, in which gay narratives were largely absent. In 2020, Salman Toor became an international star.

A prominent painting from the 2020 “How Will I Know” show at the Whitney is “Fag Puddle.” It is a collection of items from previous paintings and his imagination: a pile of greed and lust, and a bit of dark humor. Seeped in green, it features a feather boa, an open book, a dildo, a disembodied foot, a clown-nosed head from a previous painting, a striped necktie, a hanging light bulb, a pearl necklace, an iPhone on a tripod, and a young man’s head caressing an upside-down male-ish hairy bottomed figure. Apparently Toor can paint anything and make it look graceful.

Drawing has always been a natural and essential form of expression for Toor. As a child, he often drew images of pretty young women from his mother’s fashion magazines. Growing up, he faced years of intimidation and ostracization due to his femininity. At the age of fifteen, he came out as gay to his parents, who eventually accepted his sexuality but struggled to understand it.

Toor wants to “re-value Brown people in Western culture by examining their relationships to animals,” as seen in Puppy Play Date, 2019 (above). He also addresses dangers faced in Pakistan, where homosexuality is against the law, and official punishments as severe as life in prison. Car Boys (below) shows two young men parked in a car, and a policeman shining a light in the window.

Toor describes his figures as undernourished and hairy bodies of color occupying familiar bourgeois urban spaces. He envisions them as educated and creative individuals navigating the artist’s life in New York City amidst shifting ideas about race, immigration, foreignness, and American identity. These figures sometimes resemble lifestyle images, representing fantasies about himself and his community. Toor creates imagined public and private scenes in which he and his friends are totally free to be themselves.

Many of Toor’s paintings are lavished with vibrant greens and subtle pinks. More fantasy than realism, he chooses his colors so they will evoke emotions from the viewer. The color green can create a nocturnal atmosphere while simultaneously carrying conflicting associations with poison and glamour, according to Toor. He often works from memory and frequently includes his friends as subjects in his artworks.

Interested in learning more about Salman Toor and his Emerald Green? Check out this verdant 8 minute short from Art21. In the video, Toor hangs with a close friend, visits art museums, paints while sitting on the floor, and tells his dad some news about his recent fame.

Sources:

https://www.salmantoor.com/

https://www.instagram.com/accounts/login/?next=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.instagram.com%2Fsalman.toor%2F%3Fhl%3Den

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salman_Toor

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2022/08/08/how-salman-toor-left-the-old-masters-behind

https://whitney.org/exhibitions/salman-toor

https://whitney.org/essays/salman-toor-self-as-cipher

You’re reading a V. Note, written by Ruthie V, the director of the Seattle Artist League. The League is an art school for the busy nurse, tech geek, and mom with a long lost art degree. We offer engaging online classes in drawing and painting. Join us! Find your class: https://www.seattleartistleague.com/product-category/d-online-classes/