RON ATHEY- HAPPY TO YOU~!

fetish ball- circa 1992

theoretical party- circa 1982

today is RON ATHEY'S BIRTHDAY.. he is a mere 50!

i have know ron for over 200 years,but it feels only like
 1986 when he used to work for michael morrison on hollywood blvd.

ron athey & michael morrison- circa 1986- 

photo by me- rick castro

 ron was one of the original dancers from CLUB FUCK & THE FIRST FAIMLY OF FUCK

bobby wildfire, christian, ron athey,

 james stones & miquel biernstein~ 

first family of fuck- circa 1990, 

photo by me- rick castro

i have had the pleaseure  of photographing him for DRUMMER magazine and featuring him in my first film- HUSTLER WHITE, (1996) 

HAPPY BDAY~ LLLLLAAAAAADDDYYYY!, 
(it's a joke between the two of us)

Ron Athey (December 16, 1961) is an American performance artist associated with body art and with extreme performance art. He has performed in the U.S. and internationally (especially in the UK and Europe). Athey's work explores challenging subjects like the relationships between desire, sexuality, and traumatic experience. Many of his works include aspects of S&M in order to confront pre-conceived ideas about the body in relation to masculinity and religious iconography.

the judas cradle- vision of excess- 2004

self- obliteration 1

athey also engages directly with the ideas of queer philosophers and artists like

george bataille, pierre, molinier and pier paolo pasolini.

athey's performance SOLAR ANUS refers directly to one of bataille's essays, and in 2002 athey curated an endurance/performance festival inspired by pasolini's work.

athey has been a regular contributor to honcho and la weekly, and teaches performance studies.

he currently lives in london.

In 1994, Athey became the target of controversy over the use of federal funds to support art work with visible gay content. In a performance of an excerpt from Four Scenes in a Harsh Life at theWalker Art Center in Minneapolis, Athey made cuts in co-performer Divinity Fudge's back, placed strips of absorbent paper towel on the cuts and then, using a pulley, hoisted the blood-stained cloths into the air. Local art critic Mary Abbe (who had not witnessed the performance) wrote a sensationalizing story about the performance which appeared on the front page of Minneapolis Star-Tribune. 

That story was picked up the Associated Press and quickly made national headlines. Widespread anxiety about AIDS created a perfect storm as critics and lawmakers including Jesse Helms falsely described his performances as exposing audience members to HIV-infected blood.

Although this 1994 performance was supported only indirectly (via the Walker Center) by $150 from National Endowment for the Arts, Athey's name was frequently invoked in criticism of the NEA. Athey has never applied for federal funds to support his work. Nevertheless, in many ways the controversy of this incident continues to shape public perception of his work.

wearing leigh bowery's gown- photo michael childers- 2002