Queer Artist Centerfold: Travis Wood

Name:
Travis Wood

Stage Name:
N/A

Contact info:
facebook.com/travis.wood1

Birthplace:
Long Beach, CA

Zodiac sign:
Virgo

Your medium/genre:
Multi-Media Performance Artist: Monologue/ Dance/ Film

Describe what you do:
Questioning Queer Identity in America

Turn on’s:
Beards, Artists, Nerds, Tattoo’s

Turn off’s:
Webbed toes

Describe your perfect date:
A Disney film followed by hot sex.

Pet peeves:
A lack of common sense.

Fave sex idol:
James Dean, Hugh Jackman

1ST crush:
10th grade. His name was Scott. He was a dancer, singer and actor. He was Jewish with curly hair. I knew I was Queer the minute I saw him!

Fave music:
The Breeders, Throwing Muses, Cyndi Lauper, Xiu Xiu, PJ Harvey, Queer Core

Top movies that inspire you:
My Own Private Idaho, Swoon, The Living End, Edward II, The Last of England, Miyazaki films, Derek Jarman films

Fave quote:
“On my darkest days I wear my brightest colors.” –Cyndi Lauper

Reading List:
The Neverending Story by Michael Ende, Collected Poems by Allen Ginsberg, Damien by Herman Hesse, Queer by William Burroughs, Becoming A Man by Paul Monette

One of your obsessions:
Constantly thinking of ways to be creative.

Influences/mentors/heroes:
Tim Miller, Ian MacKinnon, David Drake, Danielle Brazell

Fave queer Artist(s):
Ginsberg & Jarman

Fave queer from history:
Allen Ginsberg and Derek Jarman

Most Pivotal Performance/event/etc:
I was a freshman in HS and saw a performance artist spray cheez-whiz over her body as she went into a monologue about the evils of George H. Bush. I knew immediately that I wanted to be a performance artist too.

Fave performance experience:
I camped out to see the West Coast Premiere of RENT. I got front row center seats. The cast was spitting on me during the entire show. I couldn’t have been happier.

Most frightening performance experience:
I was in a production of Tony Kushner’s “A Bright Room Called Day” as Baz. During a “fight scene” an actor got carried away and threw me across the stage. It was incredibly frightening and amazing at the same time.

Places performed:
I've appeared as a "performance artist" in clubs, alleys, street corners and festivals throughout California. I have performed with the Knightsbridge Theater Company, Dream Circus Theater Co., Chakra Explorers, A Queer Exchange, Corpus Delicti Butoh Performance Lab, Highways Performance Space, Queer Mondays and Gathering of the Tribes.

Education:
Orange County High School of the Arts, Cypress College (Acting & Directing), Los Angeles City College (Acting/ Directing for Film), Eric Morris, Mark Majarian, Danielle Brazell, Tim Miller, Malia Ma (Butoh), Joe Talkington (Butoh)

What do you (does your art) stand for:
Breaking Queer Stereotypes, Embracing Queer Stereotypes

Fave prop or costume:
A dress I made out of Frontier Magazine Sex & Cosmetic Ads.

Thoughts on the LA queer art scene:
The LA Queer Art Scene is very elitist. I am very thankful for Highways and Queer Mondays for bringing me closer to the fringe artists with incredible talent that often get overlooked at other venues/ events.

What is your Vision for the Queer Future:
Creating our own future based off Queer ideas and stopping the Heteronormality of queer culture.

What do you see as the future for queer art:
Using technology to reach more people thru queer art and performance.

What are your upcoming plans/shows/events/include dates and info:
Currently working on my Cinema Degree, Turning Grimm Fairy Tales into Queer Stories, Working on Monologues and performances inspired by my Queer life.

Sample of Work:
http://www.youtube.com/blueboyx