The two latest pieces by the neo shunga painter Jeff Faerber (1974) display a bespectacled male protagonist involved in a threesome, one with two girls, and one with a girl and a man. A number of things struck me about these works, so we decided to conduct a short interview to discuss these details.
1) What is your fascination with bespectacled protagonists? Is this autobiographical?
It is partially autobiographical. I do wear glasses so I do feel some kinship with bespectacled people (both the men and women). But also, generally people with glasses are still considered nerdy or bookish, so I like the contradiction of cerebral, academic folk having hard-core sex. Also, it is just one more contemporary element that I can add to the form of traditional shunga.
Fig.1 Title: "With careful deliberation, a part-time lesbian and her full-time fuck buddy induct a bespectacled third, and after they dispense with the perfunctory small talk, they commence with acts of intense romantic physicality, wherein three hearts clamor like primal beasts as does a mysteriously located carbon monoxide detector with an ailing battery." (Aug 2026)
Fig.1a
2) Do the depicted figures come from your imagination, a photograph, or a live model?
Most of the figures come from what my wife and I jokingly call "research." It is footage of people having sex from streamed media found online.
Fig.2 Title: "A fastidious bunch multitasked, simultaneously knocking off these items from their to-do list: hygiene and high jinx" (Aug 2026)
3) Why do you often choose to depict trios in your paintings? Is it a compositional choice?
The trios are mostly just for variation. My first dozen or so shunga pieces were all couples, so now I am trying to branch out into differing scenarios. However, a trio does open a lot more compositional options, plus an increase in hands, mouths, and orifices to figure out how to occupy.
Fig.2a
Click HERE for Jeff Faerber's shunga paintings DoorDash® and Rhetoric SM
Jeff Faerber has the following website
Let us know your thoughts about these shunga paintings in the comment box below....!!
