Artist Kevin Sabo paints lurid landscapes of flesh with drag divas and evil CEOs to “inspire you by the possibilities of self-expression,” he tells PureHoney, “or simply, to poke fun at yourself. My paintings are my drag. Colors and patterns are my joy, and jagged lines are my pain.” Get up close and personal with his drag darlings and their pathetic businessman counterparts at TW Fine Art in West Palm Beach for the opening on March 8.

In this exhibition, his busty babes are joined by wildly patterned suit-wearing execs — the men crumbling in the presence of queens with perfectly pursed lips and stiletto heels.

Sabo himself doesn’t participate in drag. “Coming from a traditional background, I thought I’d study business or something really normal,” he says. “As a kid, I was told one day I’d be wearing a suit and tie as my day-to-day attire. This concept kickstarted a pang of doom in my stomach as my intuition knew my identity was much more nuanced than simply adhering to professional masculine norms.”

“In my newest body of work, men in suits appear as opposing counterparts to my divas,” Sabo says. “These businessmen represent ideas of control and fear, but my paintings place them in precarious or private situations. Their hidden human desires are something I can’t neglect, so I often paint them indulging in clandestine fantasies. Unlike the portrayal of my bold diva, his pursuits must remain private.”

He was drawn to drag culture after attending his first show. “The intimidation factor of the queens was so strong at first just because of their bravery and power,” he says, “but then I started becoming friends with many queens.”

Sabo renders his queens in perpetual stripper gear, joyfully flaunting their bodies across every canvas. The loud plaid patterns the men wear are “a timestamp of where we’re at in society,” he says.

“The men’s suits originally came from a place of masculinity, expectation and power. I see a suit and think of capitalism, money, tradition, power and purpose,” Sabo says. “When I was a kid, I fully thought that one day I’d grow up and adhere to this suit-wearing thing, that it would give me all the respect and power I’d need as a grown man in the workforce. Obviously, my relationship to the suit is not that.”

Instead, “My work dives into queer, feminine personalities and also the men who often decide what rights they get to have,” he says.

“It also parodies the fragility of this masculine power and starts to reveal the truth, which is that men are just as much, if not more, freaky than how drag performers, trans people, and gay/queer are perceived to be,” he says. “To me, it feels like conservative dudes in power want to strip away people’s right to express individuality, and there’s this undercurrent of envy that’s impossible to ignore.”

“I know what it is like to be born a male in a conservative society, and the way I dressed, the way I walked, the way I spoke, the ideas and values I bounced around, the music I listened to — it all gets scrutinized if it doesn’t exactly match what the next dude is thinking. Men are conditioned to live inside this very masculine echo chamber.”

Currently, the albums that Sabo listens to while creating his compositions are: “Hejira” by Joni Mitchell, “Debut” by Björk, “Fantasea” by Azealia Banks, “Blackout” by Britney Spears, “Leak 04-13 (Bait Ones)” by Jai Paul, “The Velvet Rope” by Janet Jackson, “Gemini Rights” by Steve Lacy and Kelela’s “Cut 4 Me” mixtape.

Exhibiting in Florida — where a new law targeting drag shows was blocked by federal courts but could be reinstated on appeal — he considers “a cool opportunity — I don’t mind making people uncomfortable.”

“Politicians and corporate higher-ups should be closely examined and criticized, which is a big part of who I am portraying in my work,” Sabo says. “As far as the feminine personalities that I depict, I go with more of an unbothered vibe. They’re just livin’ life. I’m sure some people have a lot to say about my work; normally, it’s behind my back.”

The Kevin Sabo exhibition runs March 8-April 2 at TW Gallery in Palm Beach. artbysabo.com, tw-fineart.com ~ Kelli Bodle