Brook Tate continues his artistic odyssey with exhibition at The Island and ‘Menagerie’ at St George’s

Brook Tate is something of a polymath, in that within any given creative area in which he makes work – from painting to writing, music to live art, or storytelling to drag, he excels.

At Mayfest 2022, his astonishing show Birthmarked, based on his upbringing as a gay man brought up as a Jehovah’s Witness, opened the festival to sell-out crowds and widespread acclaim.

And if his latest projects are anything to go by, he is continuing to build his reputation as one of the most prolific artists within Bristol at the moment, making work shot through with honesty, and in his own words, “the ways in which making music and art has saved me”.

Brook Tate in Birthmarked at Bristol Old Vic – photo: Paul Blakemore

Along with another gay ex-Jehovah’s Witness, Daniel DeWolfe, Tate is staging a joint exhibition at The Island called Queering Masculinity, which opens on November 7. As fellow visual artists, musicians and drag performers, and friends, it made a lot of sense for the pair to share their creative journey by exhibiting together.

“Since 2020 I’ve been experimenting with different painting and drawing styles and I’ve focused on my own body and homosexual models as subjects,” explains Tate. “It’s been a real journey of looking at how homosexuality and queerness is something that is feared, rejected, or loved and celebrated.”

There will be special events running throughout the week of the exhibition, from a meet the artists Q&A and discussion, to drawing and performance workshops, and a live art evening when Brook performs as drag persona Debra the Zebra, and Daniel transforms into Drawn by DeWolfe.

Drawing by Daniel DeWolfe, from the Queering Masculinity exhibition, The Island (2022) – photo: courtesy of the artist

Tate will be showing a number of paintings at another exhibition at St George’s, opening on November 24 and running for three weeks. “I’ll be showing the portraits that changed my path from nursing to art,” he says, “and a collection of pieces focusing on male queerness and homosexual intimacy.”

There will be an additional room showing a recording of Tate’s musical picture book My Great Giraffe, along with the illustrations that went into the making of it. And the puppets made famous by Birthmarked – Gayle the Whale and Martha the Giraffe – will also be on display.

Rounding up his creative year in resounding fashion on December 7, Tate will be taking over the main concert hall at St George’s for a night called Brook Tate’s Menagerie, which he describes as “part EP launch of new music, and part musical theatre mash-up show”.

Alice, painting by Brook Tate – photo: courtesy of the artist

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The EP is full of soul and folk-inflected songs about faith and sexuality. It is likely to be called Riverstone, “basically about wanting to be a stone that sits at the bottom of a river instead of constantly trying to work things out,” smiles Tate.

“Because it’s more piano/strings-based, I thought St George’s was the perfect place to perform it live.”

Accompanying Tate on the night, audiences can expect live projection and illustration from Tom Bonson, who also plays in Tate’s band, along with Samuel Fox, Eddie Benfield, Junior Nascimento and drummer Eva Redman (aka the voice of Gayle the Whale).

And there is a live drag transformation into Debra the Zebra, too. Though this time, Tate will be splicing songs from his musical theatre shows Mr Maglump and My Great Giraffe with the newer territory of techno-pop.

Brook Tate in Birthmarked at Bristol Old Vic (Mayfest, 2022) – photo: Paul Blakemore

Brook Tate & Daniel Dewolfe: Queering Masculinity is at The Island Gallery, from November 7-12, open 10am daily with events each weekday evening. For more information on the workshops, performances, discussion and meet the artists Q&A, visit www.brooktate.com/queering-masculinity.

Brook Tate: Menagerie is at St George’s Bristol on December 7 at 7.30pm. Tickets are available at www.stgeorgesbristol.co.uk. There will be an accompanying exhibition of portraits, puppets and video (opening on November 24 at 8pm and then running until December 16 at 11am-4.30pm weekdays; 6-9pm weekends and whenever there are concerts programmed).

Main photo: Brook Tate

Read more: Mayfest 2022 Review: Birthmarked, Bristol Old Vic – ‘Beautifully human’

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