As a through-and-through Cancer who is averse to any form of confrontation, expressing my ideas on hotly debated subjects can be a challenge. I don't have the emotional wherewithal to engage in pointed comment sections or Twitter threads without getting unnecessarily anxious and apologetic; often carrying the resulting tension around for days.
Creating art has not only empowered my voice, but served as the catalyst for self-reflection and a gentle interrogation of long-held views. This has certainly been the case with my first solo show, Fragile Masculinity, Handle With Care, which opens next week as part of the Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras program.
Masculinity is quite rightly the word of the moment. We (men) are being held accountable in ways never before seen; coming to terms with a 2000-year history of women being viewed as second class citizens. While some so-called ‘men’s rights activists’ would argue that we’re in the midst of a perilous and unrelenting campaign against masculinity, I see it a little differently. I see the emerging conversation as an opportunity to take responsibility for our inherent privilege and redefine what it means to be a man. 
A big part of this is examining the ways in which men are conditioned by society and the media - the inherent belief systems we hold around strength, stoicism and expression. We're taught from a young age to toughen up, man up, that boys don't cry, that we should take it like a man. The result is that it's easy for men to fall into the habit of misdirecting difficult emotions, translating them into anger or an unaddressed, ever-present sadness.
'Men's Health cover', 2018. Ink on archival paper. Source: Supplied
But would this be the case if the stories we were told about men instead championed vulnerability as strength? What if we were told from a young age that strong men were those who knew when to ask for help? Those who understood the value of opening up? What if mental health was viewed in the same light as gym culture? What if mental health 'gainz' were a thing we hashtagged on Instagram?
Having the opportunity to express my journey towards a new understanding of masculinity, particularly through multiple creative mediums, has been one of the most rewarding - and, at times, confronting - experiences of my life.
Fragile Masculinity, Handle With Care is my way of imagining an alternative universe in which our notions of masculinity, strength and health are dramatically shifted. Delicate in form, my works interrogate the idea that a man’s pursuit of strength ultimately results in a fragile sense of self; of what it is that makes him masculine.
Inspired by the reverence of stoicism in public statues and the pseudoscience of phrenology, my art offers an alternative to the status quo - that a man's ability to embrace his weakness is more indicative of strength than any physicality or stone-faced aggression.
'Viagra diagram', 2018. Glazed ceramic. Source: Supplied
The very premise of fragile masculinity could be illustrated as two men locking each other in the same tiny, restrictive cage and then freaking out at anyone who walks by and looks at them funny. When we hold onto any concept too tightly — particularly something so tied to our identity, like gender — we lose all flexibility in that area, making us unequipped to not only accept other people, but to accept and express ourselves.
Samuel Leighton-Dore is a multidisciplinary artist, writer and director living on the Gold Coast. He views his artistic practice as a natural extension of his written work. You can follow him on Instagram here.
Source: Supplied
Fragile Masculinity, Handle With Care opens on Wednesday 20th February, 6pm - 9pm at m2 Gallery on Elizabeth Street in Sydney. It runs until Monday 25th February, open 10am - 7pm.
A live stream of the parade will be available on SBS On Demand and the SBS Twitter account on Saturday 2 March. SBS Arabic 24 will report live from the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras Parade to Arabic-speaking audiences around Australia.
You can watch the SBS parade coverage on Sunday March 3rd at 8.35pm.
