HILL DISTRICT
Pearl, 32” X 44” oil, 2008
The Hill District portraits of African American drag queens are painted from photographs that were taken in the Hill District of Pittsburgh, PA during its heyday. From the 1930s – 1950s the Hill District was one of the most influential black neighborhoods in America. At this present time, when gays and lesbians are assimilated into mainstream culture, it is important to preserve our history by examining homosexuals as they emerged in particular cultural spaces in the pre-Stonewall era. This pre-political period is notable for the ways in which gays and lesbians formed lives and lived out their desires while circumventing the law, and contending with the punishing, shaming mores of their day. I am most interested in this underground gay life that prevailed not that long ago, a time that is a part of my own personal history.
Ruby 39” X 39” oil, 2008
Ethylene 39” X 33” oil, 2008
Ethylene, invert, 39” X 33” oil, 2008
Weeegee
The photographer Weegee’s camera was the eye of the night; with his eerily accurate timing and nocturnal hours, he provided the curious with a porthole to Manhattan’s midnight world. Weegee’s photos of crime scenes, car-wreck victims in pools of their own blood, overcrowded urban beaches and various grotesques are still shocking.
The two color paintings were appropriated from the photographer Arthur Fellig, aka Weegee, whose photos in the 1930s and 40s included documenting the outlaw lives of homosexuals. The two paintings are contrasted by the difference in circumstances. “Two Girls at the Bar” conveys candidly how at home and comfortable the girls seem to be in their surroundings. Opposite that scene are the cowering men in a paddy wagon. True to form, the “Gay Deceiver” poses dramatically and defiantly for the camera. It was a criminal offense to be found same-sex dancing or having the appearance of a homosexual. Those arrested were charged as deviants.
The two color paintings were appropriated from the photographer Arthur Fellig, aka Weegee, whose photos in the 1930s and 40s included documenting the outlaw lives of homosexuals. The two paintings are contrasted by the difference in circumstances. “Two Girls at the Bar” conveys candidly how at home and comfortable the girls seem to be in their surroundings. Opposite that scene are the cowering men in a paddy wagon. True to form, the “Gay Deceiver” poses dramatically and defiantly for the camera. It was a criminal offense to be found same-sex dancing or having the appearance of a homosexual. Those arrested were charged as deviants.
Two Girls in a Bar 30” X 40” oil, 2008
Gay Deceiver 24” X 30” oil, plastic mesh, 2008
