G. B. Jones (born 1965) is a Canadian artist, filmmaker, musician, and publisher of
zines born in
Bowmanville, Canada. She is known for producing
J.D.s
''J.D.s'' is a queer punk zine founded and co-published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by G. B. Jones and Bruce LaBruce, that ran for eight issues from 1985 to 1991.
" ''J.D.s'' is seen by many to be the catalyst that pushed the queercore scene int ...
with her acclaimed''Tom Girls'' drawings before going on to create more musically, cinematically, and artistically. Additionally, her diverse projects have amply contributed to the LGBTQ+ space. Queerness is intersected with her variety of mediums and is done so purposefully with the hopes of sparking more societal discussion, connecting with more readers/ and viewers, or just being her authentic self in all she engages in. Jones continues to live and work in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
, Canada.
Career
Music
Jones' young musical beginnings started at a young age with her performing Canadian folk songs in the school choir. Though she didn’t have enough money to buy records, her uncle was very involved in the folk music community and exposed her to a musical education that would prove valuable later on.
From the early 1980s to the late 1990s, Jones performed with the all woman post-punk band
Fifth Column
A fifth column is any group of people who undermine a larger group or nation from within, usually in favor of an enemy group or another nation. According to Harris Mylonas and Scott Radnitz, "fifth columns" are “domestic actors who work to un ...
, playing drums, guitar and background vocals, and was one of the co-founders of the group.
[McDonnell, Evelyn]
''Girls + Guitars''
''Out Magazine''. ''Vol. 8, No. 10''. Published by Here Publishing. April 2000. The band's first album, ''
To Sir With Hate
''To Sir With Hate'' is the debut album by Canadian post punk band Fifth Column, released in 1985 on Hide Records. Considered a classic of Canadian music, it was named a shortlisted nominee in the 1976-1985 category for the 2016 Polaris Music Pri ...
'' was released in 1985.
[Michael Barclay, Ian A.D. Jack and Jason Schneider, '' Have Not Been the Same: The Can-Rock Renaissance 1985-1995''. ]ECW Press
ECW Press is a Canadian book publisher located in Toronto, Ontario. It was founded by Jack David and Robert Lecker in 1974 as a Canadian literary magazine named ''Essays on Canadian Writing''. They started publishing trade and scholarly book ...
. . In 2002, Fifth Column's last release, ''Imbecile'', appeared on the
Kill Rock Stars
Kill Rock Stars is an independent record label founded in 1991 by Slim Moon and Tinuviel Sampson, and based in both Olympia, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. The label has released a variety of work in different genres, but was originally known ...
compilation album ''
Fields and Streams''.
Artwork and publications
G. B. Jones initially received recognition for her ''Tom Girls'' drawings, which were published in the
queer
''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are not heterosexual or cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against those with same-sex desires or relationships in the late 19th century. Beginning in the lat ...
punk fanzine
A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...
''
J.D.s
''J.D.s'' is a queer punk zine founded and co-published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by G. B. Jones and Bruce LaBruce, that ran for eight issues from 1985 to 1991.
" ''J.D.s'' is seen by many to be the catalyst that pushed the queercore scene int ...
'', founded by Jones and co-published with
Bruce LaBruce.
It would go on to include contributors like
Anonymous Boy
Tony Arena (born circa 1965, Franklin Square, New York) – also known by his pen name Anonymous Boy – is an openly queer artist, writer, and filmmaker. He is known for his comics, his involvement in the queercore movement, and other contributi ...
and
Dennis Cooper.
J.D.s was modeled after a soft- core gay magazine from the 50s and early 60s called
Physique Pictorial in an effort to not only elevate queer history, but also to critique it, expand it, and bring it up to date.
Before there was J.D.s, Jones found her footing with Photocopy Art and the photocopier through the help of her instructor,
Barbara Astman. The empire Jones and LaBruce formed, in addition to the zine produced, included creating compilation cassettes like HIDE with
Caroline Azar, directing and starring in videos, hosting a film series at a Toronto nightclub, and heading a clique of anarchists called the New Lavender Panthers.
Themes
In an interview with
Xtra Toronto, Jones shares, “I was interested in certain issues that I don’t think many people may have picked up on in the work, ideas about authority figures, power, obviously, and the abuse of power, and gender roles as they pertain to both sexes. I think there’s been a tendency to take a very reductivist view of the work as simply erotic and kind of dismiss that there could be any other concerns involved.”
According to
Dodie Bellamy
Dodie Bellamy (born 1951) is an American novelist, nonfiction author, journalist, educator and editor. Her book, ''Cunt-Ups'' (2001) won the 2002 Firecracker Alternative Book Award. Her work is frequently associated with that of the New Narrativ ...
, G. B. Jones "co-opts the male-on-male objectifying gaze of gay erotica and converts it to a female-on-female gaze" and her''Tom Girls'' series of drawings (based on the work of
Tom of Finland) are "unapologetic, thrillingly anti-assimilationist."
Jones gives her marginalized female characters a place to reclaim their power. By changing the narrative, Jones's drawings allow viewers to compare the effect of women in those positions of authority versus the men.
Legacy
J.D.s would go on to inspire future queercore zines like S.C.A.B (Society for the Annihilation of Breeders) and
Fanorama ''Fanorama'' (also known as ''Fanorama Society'' and ''Fanorama Cabal'') is a Rhode Island-based zine and zine-distro produced by journalist/activist REB (Richard E. Bump). According to their website it is the "grand-daddy of the queer zine scene". ...
. Fifth Column would qo on to pave the path for queercore,
riot grrl
Riot grrrl is an underground feminist punk movement that began during the early 1990s within the United States in Olympia, Washington and the greater Pacific Northwest and has expanded to at least 26 other countries. Riot grrrl is a subcultu ...
scenes, and entire movements such as
Queercore Punk and
Vaginal Davis.
On Queerness
Jones coined the term “
homocore” with LaBruce to cater to the social mutants of the underground. It later evolved into
"queercore" to be more inclusive.
Exhibition history
Jones has exhibited her art nationally and internationally since the early 1990s, in spaces such as
Columbus Museum of Art, Columbus;
Participant Inc., New York;
Mercer Union, Toronto;
The Power Plant
The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery is a Canadian non-collecting public contemporary art gallery located at the heart of Toronto, Ontario at the Harbourfront Centre. It is a registered Canadian charitable organization supported by its membe ...
, Toronto; Kunsthalle Exnergasse, Vienna;
White Columns
White Columns is New York City’s oldest alternative non-profit art space. White Columns is known as a showcase for up-and-coming artists, and is primarily devoted to emerging artists who are not affiliated with galleries. All work submitted is ...
, New York;
AKA Artist Run Space, Winnipeg; Muncher Kunstverein, Munich; and
Schwules Museum
The Schwules Museum (English: Gay Museum) in Berlin, Germany, is a museum and research centre with collections focusing on LGBTQ+ history and culture. It opened in 1985 and it was the first museum in the world dedicated to gay history.
The muse ...
, Berlin. Her first gallery was
Feature Inc.
Feature, also known as Feature Gallery and Feature Inc., opened in Chicago on April 1, 1984, with an exhibition of Richard Prince rephotographs. The gallery then moved to New York in 1988.
Feature officially became Feature Inc. in January 1994.
...
in
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
New York may also refer to:
Film and television
* '' ...
, curated by Hudson, who was the first art dealer to showcase her ''Tom Girls'' series of drawings from 1991 to 1999.
Selected solo exhibitions
* ''G.B. Jones'', Cooper Cole, Toronto, Canada (2022)
* ''Temple of Friendship'', Cooper Cole, Toronto, Canada (2020)
* ''what’s next is close at hand'', Cooper Cole, Toronto, Canada (2018)
* ''Born Yesterday (two-person with Paul P.)'', Participant Inc, New York, USA (2017)
* ''Past Present Future'', Lexander, Los Angeles, USA (2011)
* ''La-bas'', La Centrale Galerie, Montreal, Canada (2008)
* ''Rise Up Thou Earth'', Sunday, New York, USA (2007)
* ''The Power and the Glory'', Paul Petro Contemporary Art, Toronto, Canada (2005)
* ''Crush'', Paul Petro Contemporary Art, Toronto, Canada (2003)
* ''Good''. Bad. G.B. Jones (cur. Reid Shier), Or Gallery, Vancouver, Canada (1996)
* ''Girly Pictures (cur. Shonagh Adelman)'', Mercer Union, Toronto, Canada (1994)
* ''Feature'', New York, USA (1991)
Filmography
Jones has been making movies since 1985 and her work has been exhibited throughout North America, South America, Europe, Israel and Australia. Her most recent movie, "
The Lollipop Generation
''The Lollipop Generation'' is a 2008 Canadian underground experimental film written, produced, and directed by G. B. Jones, whose previous films include ''The Troublemakers'' and ''The Yo-Yo Gang''. It premiered as the Gala Feature presentation ...
", was showcased at the Gala Premiere for The Images Festival of 2008 and from there went on to play around the world. Jones would create her movies on
Super 8 mm film and analogue video, utilizing guerrilla film tactics and embracing a no-budget credo she refers to as "The Aesthetics of Poverty." As a result, G.B. has frequently been regarded as the creator and contributor for important cultural movements which have emerged in the past three decades.
Director
* ''The Troublemakers'', directed by G. B. Jones (1990)
* ''The Yo-Yo Gang'', directed by G. B. Jones (1992)
* ''The Lollipop Generation'', directed by G. B. Jones (2008)
* ''The Dark End of the Street'', directed by G.B. Jones (2017)
Actor
* ''Fifth Column at the Funnel'', directed by John Porter (1982)
* ''
Boy, Girl
Bruce LaBruce (born January 3, 1964) is a Canadian artist, writer, filmmaker, photographer, and underground director based in Toronto.
Life and career
LaBruce was born in Tiverton, Ontario. He has claimed both Justin Stewart and Bryan Bruce as ...
'', directed by Bruce LaBruce (1987)
* ''
Bruce and Pepper Wayne Gacy's Home Movies
Bruce and Pepper Wayne Gacy's Home Movies also known as Home Movies is a short experimental film by Bruce LaBruce and Candy Parker.
Made in Toronto, Ontario, Canada in 1988, it is filmed in colour and black and white on Super 8mm film and is 12 m ...
'', directed by Bruce LaBruce and Candy Parker (1988)
* ''Like This'', music video for
Fifth Column
A fifth column is any group of people who undermine a larger group or nation from within, usually in favor of an enemy group or another nation. According to Harris Mylonas and Scott Radnitz, "fifth columns" are “domestic actors who work to un ...
, directed by Bruce LaBruce and Fifth Column (1990)
* ''
No Skin Off My Ass'', directed by
Bruce LaBruce (1991)
* ''Donna'', music video for Fifth Column, directed by Friday Myers (1994)
* ''She's Real'', directed by
Lucy Thane (1997)
* ''I Believe in the Good Of Life'', music video for The Hidden Cameras, directed by
Joel Gibb, (2005)
* ''She Said Boom: The Story of Fifth Column'', directed by Kevin Hegge, (2012)
* ''
Queercore: How to Punk a Revolution'', directed by
Yony Leyser, (2017]
Further reading
"G. B. Jones: Living Life Like a Car Crash" ''Lexander Magazine'' (28 March 2013)
; Books
*
Jennifer Camper, ed., ''Juicy Mother'',
Soft Skull Press, 2005,
* Jennifer Camper and
Manic D Press
Manic D Press is an American literary press based in San Francisco, California publishing fiction (novels and short stories), poetry, cultural studies, art, narrative-oriented comix, children's books, and alternative travel trade paperbacks. It was ...
, eds., ''Juicy Mother 2: How They Met'', 2007
* Firoza Elavia, ed., ''Cinematic folds: the furling and unfurling of images'', Pleasure Dome, 2008,
*
Marcus Ewert and Mitchell Watkins, eds., ''Ruh Roh'', published by Feature Inc. and Instituting Contemporary Idea, NYC, 1992
* Robin Fisher, ed., 'What's Wrong? Explicit Graphic Interpretations Against Censorship'',
Arsenal Pulp Press
Arsenal Pulp Press is a Canadian independent book publishing company, based in Vancouver, British Columbia. The company publishes a broad range of titles in both fiction and non-fiction, focusing primarily on underrepresented genres such as und ...
, 2002,
* Andrea Juno, ed., ''Dangerous Drawings'', Juno Books, 1997,
* Selene Kapsaski (edited by Jeremy Richey), ''Welcome to Jonestown: Southern Ontario Gothic'', Art Decades, 2015,
*
Robert Kirby and David Kelly, eds., ''Boy Trouble'', Boy Trouble Books, 2004,
* Robert Kirby and David Kelly, eds., ''The Book of Boy Trouble 2: Born to Trouble'', Green Candy Press, 2008
* Andy Paciorek and Katherine Beem, eds, ''Folk Horror Revival: Field Studies'', Wyrd Harvest Press, 2015,
* Leila Pourtavaf, ed., ''Feminismes Electrique''. La Centrale, 2012,
* Spencer, Amy; ''DIY: The Rise Of Lo-Fi'', Marion Boyars Publishers, London, England, 2005
*
Scott Treleaven
Scott Treleaven is a Canadian artist whose work employs a variety of media including collage, film, video, drawing, photography and installation.
Artwork
Critical writings have invoked references to Jean Genet, William S. Burroughs, Jack Piers ...
, ''The Salivation Army Black Book'' , Printed Matter Inc./Art Metropole, 2006,
; G. B. Jones, editor
* ''Double Bill'', edited by
Caroline Azar, Jena von Brücker, G. B. Jones, Johnny Noxzema, Rex, Issues 1–5, 1991 to 2001
* ''
J.D.s
''J.D.s'' is a queer punk zine founded and co-published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by G. B. Jones and Bruce LaBruce, that ran for eight issues from 1985 to 1991.
" ''J.D.s'' is seen by many to be the catalyst that pushed the queercore scene int ...
'', edited by
Bruce LaBruce and G. B. Jones, Issues 1-7, 1985 to 1991
* ''Hide'', edited by Caroline Azar, Candy Pauker, G. B. Jones, Issues 1-5, 1981 to 1985
See also
* ''
J.D.s
''J.D.s'' is a queer punk zine founded and co-published in Toronto, Ontario, Canada by G. B. Jones and Bruce LaBruce, that ran for eight issues from 1985 to 1991.
" ''J.D.s'' is seen by many to be the catalyst that pushed the queercore scene int ...
''
*
List of female film and television directors
*
List of LGBT-related films directed by women
References
External links
G. B. Joneson
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
*
Bunny & the Lakersat ''
WFMU'' (February 15, 2010)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, G. B.
Living people
Canadian contemporary artists
Canadian experimental filmmakers
Canadian women drummers
Canadian women guitarists
Canadian film actresses
Canadian punk rock drummers
Canadian punk rock guitarists
Canadian women artists
Canadian women film directors
LGBT artists from Canada
LGBT film directors
Pop artists
Queercore musicians
Women experimental filmmakers
Actresses from Toronto
Artists from Toronto
Film directors from Toronto
Musicians from Toronto
Fifth Column (band) members
Riot grrrl musicians
Feminist musicians
1965 births
Canadian lesbian musicians