BENJAMIN FREDRICKSON: WEDGIES

Opening reception: November 9, 6-9 pm.
Book signing: November 9, 4-6 pm.

CULTUREEDIT Gallery is pleased to announce an exhibition of photographs by American artist Benjamin Fredrickson coinciding with the release of his first book WEDGIES, published by Baron Books. The exhibition is the first to showcase Fredrickson’s WEDGIES series, a collection of photographs that document the wedgie subculture. Created over four years during the pandemic, the series shows male subjects provocatively-positioned and given extreme wedgies or “atomic” wedgies (where underwear is pulled up above the subjects’ heads).

The subjects are mainly sourced through social media and online wedgie community. The agency of the sitters— even as they are dominated and objectified — is crucial to Fredrickson’s work, as they help to co-construct by asserting their self-hood and desires. As an avid participant in the scene, Fredrickson is uniquely positioned as an insider. His work goes beyond documentation, to possess an erotic charge that accompanies the artist’s pleasure. The subjects face away from the viewer and remain anonymous, so that they are further objectified, and the focus is concentrated on the stretched underwear and the form of the sitters’ bodies. Fredrickson states, “For this project, the body is used as a prop to make the wedgie shine. The wedgie is the work”.

Fredrickson’s photographs go beyond the physical, and affirm the artistic potential of kinky collaboration—the images are born from the sitters and photographer coming together to fulfil their desires. Moreover, since Fredrickson is the one giving the wedgies (either with his own hands, or using a series of elaborate contraptions to hold the underwear up), the images are shot from the dominant partner’s perspective. Sometimes, the photographer’s shoes or crotch are visible in the shots, and this can lend the images a POV perspective that invites the viewer to ogle the bodies and wedgies on display, and to become a third participant in the dynamic. With the ass being the vehicle for the wedgie, it is naturally a focal point for the images. Fredrickson approaches the ass with a distinctly queer subjectivity, however, as the masculinity of his sitters is central to the images’ aesthetics, and homoerotic lust is at the heart of the project.

Wedgie fetishes, as depicted in Fredrickson’s work, involve complex BDSM dynamics, blending psychological and physical domination. The discomfort and pain of the wedgie provide pleasure for both the giver and receiver, touching on themes of bullying, degradation, and subconscious desires from early development. The arrested motion in the photographs, with subjects restrained by their underwear, adds a captivating element to the visual narrative.

On view will be 30 photographs in varying sizes and a slide-show projection that encapsulate not only the

final work, but an intimate insight into the creative process. To accompany the exhibition, Fredrickson will be releasing a limited edition run tees produced by EVERYBODY, a limited edition run of three plates featuring his work, as well as a limited edition rug produced by Henzel Studio.

ABOUT BENJAMIN FREDRICKSON

Benjamin Fredrickson (b. Minneapolis, MN, USA, 1980) is a New York City-based photographer whose images centre around queer fetish subculture. He attended Parsons Paris and attained a BFA from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. He has exhibited work at Daniel Cooney Fine Art (NYC), the Museum of Arts and Design (NYC), the National Arts Club (NYC), Yale School of Art (New Haven, CT), and the Leslie-Lohman Museum (NYC).

ABOUT CULTUREEDIT GALLERY

CULTUREEDIT Gallery is founded by Joakim Andreasson a creative director, curator and catalyst of creative projects in the commercial sphere. Past exhibitions curated and organized by Andreasson include ones with Bruce LaBruce, Jack Pierson, Silvia Prada, Pol Anglada, Jwan Yosef, Patrick Church and Mel Odom, to name a few.

For media inquiries, please contact Christian Espinel at info@cultureedit.com