Beyond the bear aesthetic: DJ Amago explores intimacy and connection

His works pair hairy, masculine figures with soft, pink tones and symbolic threads.

DJ Amago’s highly distinctive male portraiture might lead one to think that he focuses on a specific stereotype within the gay universe: the bear.

In the queer community, bears are the bulkier, taller, and/or chunkier types. Like the commonly held views about bears, these men tend to embody the gentle giant trope. They are hirsute, as possessing more body and facial hair is often seen as making someone more attractive. Given the emphasis on physical fitness and metrosexual aesthetics that many urban gay men subscribe to, it’s no wonder that those who do not fit the mold eventually gravitated elsewhere, forming clubs, cliques, and their own counterculture.

In Japan and Taiwan, for example, bear communities have created distinct subcultures, making them easier to recognize. In Manila, bear clubs organize events that draw hundreds of participants in body-positive celebrations. But that is not what DJ Amago, a Marketing graduate, strives to portray. In fact, he is not even sure if he would classify his subjects as bears.

“I just decided to add facial hair to make them (his portraits) look more masculine. For the longest time, I was so used to drawing girls that the habit carried over. The facial features of the people I drew used to look so soft, so I had to find a way to make them look like men… I really like the guys I draw. Most of them look soft, stoic, and calm, because that’s how we are in real life.”

DJ’s men have delicately drawn stubble, pinkish blushing cheeks, and those slanting, heavy-lidded eyes often associated with seductive Japanese or Taiwanese men. They are half-naked, or in some works — pieces that have gotten him into trouble on certain social media apps — fully unclothed, with exposed members.

Using tiny pencils and swirls of watercolor to construct his subjects, the self-taught artist places them in mythical gardens full of seductive blooms or situates them in intimate bedrooms where foreplay feels inevitable.

The contradictions are rife, and yet they work: rough, tough archetypes rendered through feminized media; body hair galore paired with porcelain complexions; male genitalia depicted in Hello Kitty pink tones. These are the tools employed by DJ, allowing for a subtler, more palatable interpretation of sexually suggestive imagery.

Is DJ a bear himself?

“I don’t know, actually. There are too many labels that I don’t even know where I fit in — or if we even need those labels just to belong to a certain subgroup within the gay community. I hope I’ll have the time to join and interact with different gay tribes. I experienced that in Taipei and Bangkok — everyone was so warm and welcoming.”

This lack of rigidity may be what allows his erotic works to appeal to a wider audience beyond bears. They may be viewed as strange or even alien, but not repulsive. These hairy men — much like those illustrated by Thai digital artist Natawat Ransikriangkrai — have helped carve a path toward greater bear acceptance and mainstream receptivity.

But if the works are not necessarily about bears, then what are they about? Are they representations of himself? Is he painting himself into his canvases?

“I don’t view the figures I create as me, but they are absolutely about my personal history. Everything I make is an expression of my emotions, my thoughts, and my perspective as a gay man, which is a viewpoint I know resonates with a lot of the queer community. But beyond that, it’s just a human thing. We’re all constantly moving through similar emotional cycles.”

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