My Beard


The term A Beard in American Gay vernacular refers to any opposite-sex escort taken to an event in an effort to give a homosexual person the appearance of being out on a date with a person of the opposite sex.

When I grew a beard for the first time in my life, I felt as if I was trying to pass as someone else.  It was a disguise. It gave me protection, authority, a look of someone else. People tended to treat me as a much older man. Others gave me the authority of a wise sage.  I wanted shave it off, but not before using it as an art project.

I began studying men’s beards and the variety of facial hair. I considered historic figures and pop culture memories.

How many personas could I create out of my existing beard?
The removal of my facial hair became almost mathematical.
How many beards?  How many mustaches? How many memories could I create from each new beard and mustache?

This video is about first impressions, preconceptions, disguises, altered egos, assumed identities, and shared memories.

It is My Beard.