Tiger Strikes Asteroid Los Angeles (TSA LA) is proud to present THE BOY IS MINE, THE BOY IS MINE, THE BOY IS MINE, THE BOY IS MINE, THE BOY IS MINE, a group exhibition featuring works by Aubrey Longley-Cook, Perseus Lira, Matt Lifson, Gabe Medina Mendez, Dakota Noot, Brett Park, Joshua W. Rains, and Christopher Anthony Velasco. On view from May 31 through June 22, 2025, we will also host a conversation with the artists on June 8, moderated by Miguel Barragan, Assistant Director of Student Success and Curriculum and Clinical Assistant Professor at ASU FIDM.

THE BOY IS MINE draws inspiration from the iconic 1998 hit song by Brandy and Monica, which tells the story of a heated exchange between two women vying for the love of the same man. While rooted in a story of romantic rivalry and possessiveness, the phrase “the boy is mine” also evokes broader themes of ownership, exclusivity, and desire. This exhibition uses that cultural touchpoint to examine the layered dynamics of love, relationships, competition, and self-realization. For the curator, the song held deep personal significance during their formative years—and now, it becomes a lens through which to reflect on those experiences with renewed perspective. 

The artworks by the eight artists in this exhibition speak to a queer framework and the broader diasporas of intersecting, often marginalized communities. Through carefully chosen material and imagery, the exhibition captures moments of pleasure, pain, intimacy, and spatial tension between characters and objects. Playful, vibrant color palettes are set against ominous, often harsh landscapes—creating a striking contrast that redefines ideas of ownership, desire, and shared experience through a queer lens.

It’s no coincidence that this exhibition opens during Pride Month. Through the embrace of song and layered queer narratives, THE BOY IS MINE celebrates the many facets of lived experience.

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Aubrey Longley-Cook is a Los Angeles–based artist known for his hand-stitched embroideries and stop-motion animations. Blending traditional craft techniques with new media, he reimagines and reanimates images through stitched abstraction and pixelation. His work has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, New York Times, Journal of Modern Craft, OUT, them, and other publications. Longley-Cook has exhibited at Craft Contemporary and the LODGE (Los Angeles), the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art (New York), and was included in the 2019 British Textile Biennial.

aubreylongley-cook.com
@aubreylongleycook

Perseus Lira is a Los Angeles–based artist whose vibrant, figurative paintings explore intimacy, memory, and the emotional weight of absence. Originally from Italy, Lira earned a BFA and MFA in Conservation and Restoration of Contemporary Art from the Brera Academy of Fine Arts in Milan. His work has been exhibited in Italy and the U.S., including Inner Links at Art Share L.A.

perseuslira.com
@perseus_lira

Matt Lifson paints from life, revealing the depths of humanity through figures placed in provocative compositions. The work explores personal narratives while examining the myths surrounding queer relationships shaped by societal sensationalism. Lifson’s paintings have been exhibited internationally, including solo shows at ACME and Angles Gallery in Los Angeles. Lifson holds an MFA from Otis College of Art and Design and a BFA from the School of Visual Arts in New York. Originally from New York, Lifson now lives and works in Los Angeles.

mattlifson.com

Gabe Medina Mendez is a ceramic artist and community organizer based in South Central Los Angeles. A first-generation Mexican-American, his work draws on familial histories and cultural hybridity, often reflecting themes of land, migration, and identity. He holds a B.A. in Studio Art from Cal State Dominguez Hills and has exhibited at venues including Craft Contemporary and the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art.

@gxbe.studio

Dakota Noot is a Los Angeles–based artist and curator whose vibrant drawings, paintings, and installations explore queer identity through rural and fantastical imagery. He earned a BFA from the University of North Dakota and an MFA from Claremont Graduate University. Noot has exhibited widely, with solo shows at venues such as Highways Performance Space, MuzeuMM, and PØST, and group exhibitions at Charlie James Gallery, Shoshana Wayne Gallery, and the Torrance Art Museum.

dakotanoot.com
@dakotanoot

Brett Park is a New York–based multidisciplinary artist whose work spans painting, sculpture, ceramics, and performance. Park’s practice explores queer Asian-American identity, masculinity, and bodily autonomy through a blend of humor, vulnerability, and critical theory. The work often features cartoonish figures and self-referential avatars, delving into themes of self-consumption, gender fluidity, and cultural stereotypes. Park’s art has been exhibited at venues including the Helen Lindhurst Gallery, Gayle and Ed Roski Gallery, Monte Vista Projects, and the USC Fisher Museum of Art.

brettpark.net
@brettpaint

Joshua W. Rains is a Chicago-based interdisciplinary artist whose work explores intimacy, surveillance, and the blurred boundaries between public and private life. Through video, performance, and installation, Rains reinterprets digital fragments—often sourced from social media—into analog forms that question authenticity, voyeurism, and mediated identity. Rains holds an MFA from the University of Southern California's Roski School of Art and Design and has exhibited nationally and internationally, including at ACRE Projects (Chicago), Klowden Mann and Rude Drawing (Los Angeles), Kunstraum (Brooklyn), and Tijuana Performera (Mexico).

joshuarains.com
@betty_wite_out

Christopher Anthony Velasco is a Los Angeles–based photographer and performance artist whose work explores queer Chicano identity through horror and camp aesthetics. His practice incorporates self-portraiture, drag, and theatrical performance, often featuring his alter egos. He has exhibited at venues such as Gallery Luisotti, Avenue 50 Studios, the Art, Design & Architecture Museum at UC Santa Barbara, and the Vincent Price Art Museum. Notable exhibitions include El Cuerpo: The (Performing) Body and the Photographic Stage at Gallery Luisotti (2024) and For Some Memory or Some Land at the Frank M. Doyle Arts Pavilion (2022).

christopheravelascophotography.com
@caver83

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