Daily Life of a Feminine Gay Man

On October 26, 2019, while working on a project regarding gay identity, I had the chance to photograph Massimo. He is self-described as gay and feminine. He prefers to wear women's clothing and makeup and as time has passed, he has become more comfortable wearing women's clothing in public. Recently, he moved into a new neighborhood and is uncertain how he will be received. On this particularly day, he and I journeyed out to run errands. He wore bell-bottom pants, high-heeled boots, a midriff shirt, a purse; his makeup was light. As we traversed the neighborhood passersby stared or choose not to make eye contact. He brushed it off. He feels safest at home were he wears sexy dresses and silk nightgowns. Internally, he struggles between his feminine desires and society's expectations of what it is to be a male. His paper mâché is a protest against all things masculine.