"Shameless" Exhibit
This collection of black and white photographs, called Shameless, was first exhibited in Berkeley in 1974, then at the Alfred Stieglitz Gallery in New York in 1976.
The subjects of these photographs are practitioners of genderfuck--the active mixing of gender roles. Their drag was creative, risky and radical. It sprang from an exuberant playfulness. Unlike cross-dressers from earlier generations, who were often in the closet, my subjects took their drag to the streets to challenge the taboos that restrict us all to a range of acceptable clothing and gestures. Hear an interview with Christopher Lonc one of the originators of genderfuck in San Francisco in the 1970's. Genderfuck was a radical new idea in the 1970's. Part of society still sees it as radical in the 21st century. These photographs are both an antecedent and a mirror of contemporary manifestations of gender fluidity. Read the History of Shameless See photographs from the SHAMELESS exhibit |
"Andy's Donuts - Center of the Universe" Exhibit
Andy's Donuts was a 24-hour lunch-counter on Castro Street in San Francisco in the mid-1970's that sold donuts and served a cheap breakfast, lunch and dinner. In 1975, Andy's was the center of genderfuck drag culture in the gay neighborhood called 'The Castro.' The best time to be seen at Andy's was at 2 AM, after the bars closed, when Andy's was packed with people in drag, who were there both to see and be seen!
I took photographs at the donut shop during the day of long-time Castro-area residents and photographs of drag artists at night. These portraits were exhibited on the walls of Andy's in a show called "Andy's Donuts - The Center of the Universe." The grand opening of the exhibit was at 2 AM on September 5, 1975. The photograph above is of one of the originators of genderfuck, Christopher Lonc. It's called "Bijou of Andy's Donuts," an homage to the photographer Brassaï who has a photograph of "Madame Bijou," titled "Miss Diamonds in the Bar de la Lune," from 1932. I was able to give Brassaï a copy of my photograph when I met him in 1976 in New York. Read about my meeting with the photographer Brassai. Hear an interview with Christopher Lonc one of the originators of genderfuck in San Francisco in the 1970's. See photographs from the ANDY'S DONUTS exhibit |
"Men Loving Men" Exhibit
This collection of black and white photographs was commissioned in 1976 by Gay Sunshine Press for the book Men Loving Men, which was published in 1977. Several of these photographs were included in my exhibit at the Alfred Stieglitz Gallery in New York in 1976. Two of these photographs, both of David and Earl, were bequeathed to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago by Chicago Daily News art critic and collector, Dennis Adrian, who donated the museum's initial permanent collection. One of the photographs, "David and Earl" is in the collection of the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay art in New York and included in their book "Fifty Treasures of Gay Art." Also included here is a photograph commissioned by Gay Sunshine for the book Black Men / White Men in 1983.
See photographs from the book MEN LOVING MEN Black and White Portraits
This is a collection of portraits of my friends and family. Many of these portraits have been included in my exhibitions in Chicago, San Francisco and New York.
See Black and White Portraits |
Color Portraits
My first noteworthy color photograph was called "A Night to Remember." It got its name from art critic Dennis Adrian, who was remembering the title of the film "An Affair to Remember" which had a scene with Deborah Kerr lying on a couch in a vivid red dress. My actual inspiration was from paintings by Marc Chagall: La Mariée and Der Spaziergang that depict a woman floating in a red dress.
See COLOR PHOTOGRAPHS My published book: PHOTOGRAPHS
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