Examining the nature of adolescent masculinity in recent art, Will Boys Be Boys? brings together paintings, photographs, sculptures, installation pieces, and video works that explore notions of identity and social belonging. The adolescent male is presented as a socially determined type, in terms of his physical appearance—clothing, hairstyle, and accessories—as well as his pastimes and behaviors. For example, two typical bonding rituals of young men (drinking and hero worship) are highlighted in a watercolor showing a wall of stacked beer cans, with a photo of Clint Eastwood’s face peering through a gap. Throughout the exhibition, many different subcultures are explored, as in the skateboard fetishization that has blossomed in the past decade, or in male adolescents’ obsessions with music and cars.

Will Boys Be Boys?, curated by Shamim M. Momin (associate curator of the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, and branch director and curator, Whitney Museum of American Art at Altria), is accompanied by an illustrated brochure.

Exhibition Itinerary

The Salina Art Center
Salina, Kansas
November 20, 2004–January 29, 2005

Museum of Contemporary Art/Denver
Denver, Colorado
February 18–April 17, 2005

Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art
Cornell University
Ithaca, New York
November 5, 2005–January 8, 2006

Gulf Coast Museum of Art
Largo, Florida
May 12, 2006–July 2, 2006

Indianapolis Museum of Art
Indianapolis, Indiana
October 22, 2006–January 14, 2007