James Bantone
Fool of the Month, 2022
James Bantone’s practice spans photography, fashion imagery, and sculpture, often drawing on the aesthetics and exaggeration of reality television. Influenced by shows like Love and Hip-Hop, his work critiques how reality TV constructs identity through spectacle, particularly in the portrayal of Black and queer subjects Bantone turns to “trash TV”
as a lens for exploring social and cultural behavior.
His use of exaggerated gestures and facial features challenges
stereotypical imagery while imagining radical Black aesthetics
unshaped by whiteness. Bantone’s work blurs entertainment and
critique, using pop culture as both source and target.
as a lens for exploring social and cultural behavior.
His use of exaggerated gestures and facial features challenges
stereotypical imagery while imagining radical Black aesthetics
unshaped by whiteness. Bantone’s work blurs entertainment and
critique, using pop culture as both source and target.
