Chaos reigns in the artwork of Mony Nuñez, aka Mony Kaos. Drawing from the aesthetics of Tom of Finland, anarcho-punk iconography, vintage gay porn, and cutesy cultural figures like Betty Boop, Kaos’s NSFW compositions—which take the form of screenprints, air-brushed banners, fliers, zines, ceramics, T-shirts, hooked rugs, and illustrations—explode with color and attitude. In her campy, raunchy, and nihilistic oeuvre, you’ll find teddy bears in studded necklaces, lesbian orgies, and a reproduction of the cover art of Hagar the Womb’s Funnery in a Nunnery record. The artist has long been enmeshed in the city’s south-side punk scene, making show flyers and band T-shirts. You can frequently find them selling their wares at the roving Zine Mercado; interested parties can also check out stock on their web store or at Buddy Chicago, located inside the Chicago Cultural Center.
A recent screenprint centers a quote from the late artist and activist David Wojnarwicz: “Hell is a place on earth. Heaven is a place in your head.” It’s an apt summation of Kaos’s aesthetic, where cops are pigs and the grim reaper lurks around the corner, but you’re still free to don your leather, turn on X-Ray Spex, and envision your wildest fantasies.
Mony Kaos web store
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