Glyn Hughes 1931 - 2014

347 my sexuality without realising it. In Cyprus no one asked any questions; everyone was very discreet. In London, for example, you never went into a public toilet. Many strange things were happening there. Homosexuality was anyway illegal and severely punishable until the end of the 1950s, if I’m not mistaken. In Cyprus, things were different. Perhaps, without realising it, I made sexual references in my work, male references, which I would not have allowed myself to do if I was in London. But I did not have so many experiences, I was more romantic... But why are references to the male body in my work? Maybe it was much easier for me then to draw a naked man, rather than a woman. The only women who one could paint were naked prostitutes. I could paint men without fear, because no one really cared. We Cypriots have never had a problem with phallic symbols! We have always been more advanced than the British. What role do male references play in your work? I believe that they are my own power. The power to impose on myself or on another man. The reasons are many, of course; it is a serious issue. On the other hand, not all my work is sexual... Although it seems so lately, whenever I look at my catalogue... Maybe it secretly is. Eroticism is certainly a very strong element in your work. But why? I mean, I’m not like that. I think it has to do with power. Your own power? My own power, do you not think? I’m an aggressive fighter, perhaps. You lived through historic moments for Cyprus, from the liberation struggle to the independence and the invasion, and you wrote: “It was important for me to be there and not be politicised.” What do you mean by that? For me, to be politicised would mean to be a member of a party. Deeply inside, I’m a socialist, but I do not consider Lyssarides a socialist. He is far right! I was talking to someone a few years ago and he told me “Glyn, I’m a communist.” And I said, “but you were talking about businesses all night long!” I do not understand politics and I do not understand what they mean by all these terms. I think no one understands! At the same time, however, you have always been part of the island’s social life, you don’t live secluded. Not at all! One could say that the way you chose to live constitutes a political act. In this sense I’m very politicised. My works are more political than erotic. But not political in the sense of Left or Right, although I lean towards the Left. I don’t know; on the one hand, I am politicised but, on the other, I’m not. I’m just an artist. You call yourself a Cypriot. I do not believe in distinctions. Not at all. I believe in Cyprus. I have managed to live here and be myself. But Cyprus can also be a difficult place. I cannot, for example, accept that in this country you see cars