Homomuseum: Heroes and Moments

May 21–July 30, 2005

What do Alexander the Great, Gertrude Stein, J. Edgar Hoover and Andy Warhol have in common?

Homomuseum is structured around the idea of an imaginary national art museum dedicated to the presentation and historicizing of art by LGBT artists. Homomuseum investigates lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender (LGBT) icons and histories that have made their mark on the political, social, economic, and cultural landscape. Homosexual politicians, architects, inventors, athletes, scientists, artists and events have shaped our world culture, this exhibition celebrates these icons and moments in history.

Homomuseum is comprised of two visual components; an exhibition and archive project. For the exhibition, LGBT artists chose a historical moment or person in the gay and lesbian community that has influenced local, national or global culture and then created a conceptual portrait of work of that person, event or place. For the archives, members of the LGBT community submitted objects/mementos that are personally important. Archive objects include photographs, books, movies, poems, drawings and include personal texts explaining the object’s significance.

Homomuseum is a response to the tremendous influence that gay culture has had on mainstream culture and will investigate how homosexuality is defined and expressed by queer artists today.

Artists: Christopher Arabadjis, Alvin Baltrop, James Bidgood, ak burns, Christopher Clary, JP Forrest, Leor Grady, Stephanie Gray, Michela Griffo, Geoffrey Hendricks and Sur Rodney (Sur), Derek Jackson, Aaron Krach, Marget Long, Gabriel Martinez, j. morrison, Rune Olsen, Predrag Pajdic and Rachel Wilberforce, Robert Ransick and Blake Goble, Matthew Ravenstahl, Milton Rosa-Ortiz, Shane Ruth, Mary Ellen Strom, Jonathan Wahl, Phillip Ward

Homomuseum Video Program

Saturdays, June 18–July 23, 2005
Curated by Jim Browne

June 18, 2005 @ 2pm
HIDE AND SEEK
Directed by Su Friedrich, 1996, 65 minutes
Su Friedrich’s brilliant film, Hide and Seek, mixes documentary and fiction to create a fascinating portrait of lesbian childhood. Revealing the imaginary universe of young lesbians, it’s about being at an age when sexual feelings are still vague. The fictional narrative tells the story of Lou: a twelve year old girl living in Brooklyn in the mid 1960’s, coming to terms with her burgeoning sexuality. Her story is skillfully woven between interviews with twenty adult women who recount salient moments from their childhoods, including their first attractions, how they felt when they first heard the word lesbian and thoughts about the possible cause for their homosexuality. Mixing several genres, the film also includes more than 100 photographs of lesbians when they were young girls, and archival footage from educational films and home movies.

June 25, 2005 @ 2pm
NITRATE KISSES
Directed by Barbara Hammer, 1992, 67 minutes
Nitrate Kisses explores eroded emulsions and images for lost vestiges of lesbian and gay culture. This first feature by Barbara Hammer, a practicing pioneer of lesbian cinema, weaves striking images of the sexual activities of four gay and lesbian couples with footage that unearths the forbidden and invisible history of a marginalized people. Archival footage from the first gay film in the U.S., Lot in Sodom, (1933) footage from German documentary and narrative films of the 1930’s are woven with current images of desire in this sexy haunting documentary.

July 9, 2005 @ 2pm
THE SALT MINES
Directed by Carlos Aparicio & Susana Aikin, 1990, 47 minutes
The Salt Mines explores the lives of Sara, Gigi and Giovanna, three Latino transvestites who for years have lived on the streets of Manhattan supporting their drug addictions through prostitution. They made their temporary home inside broken garbage trucks that the Sanitation Department keeps next to the salt deposits used in the winter to melt the snow. The three friends share the place known as “The Salt Mines” with a varied community of homeless people. They talk about their sexual identity, their past and their dreams. We follow their daily lives day and night until the place is closed and sealed by the city, forcing everyone to disperse.

July 16, 2005 @ 2pm
TONGUES UNTIED
Directed by Marlon Riggs, 1989, 55 minutes
This is the acclaimed account of Black gay life by Emmy Award–winning director Marlon Riggs. Using poetry, personal testimony, rap and performance, Tongues Untied describes the homophobia and racism that confront Black gay men. Some of the tales are troublesome: the man refused entry to a gay bar because of his color; the college student left bleeding on the sidewalk after a gay-bashing; the loneliness and isolation of the drag queen. Yet Riggs also presents the rich flavor of the Black gay male experience, from protest marches and smoky bars to the language of the “snap diva” and Vogue dancer. A benchmark film which speaks for itself.

July 23, 2005 @ 2pm
TYING THE KNOT
By Jim De Sève, 2004, 87 minutes
Jim de Sève’s no-frills documentary takes a concerted look at the heated and ongoing debate about same-sex marriage in the United States. Focusing on two gay couples who’ve become entangled in laws forbidding homosexual wedlock, the film puts a human face on the issue. Included are interviews chronicling marriage’s evolution through the centuries and a discussion by proponents, who debunk the arguments against gay unions.

In the winter of 2006, Exit Art will present its very first multi-disciplinary exhibition solely devoted to the natural environment. The Drop will focus on what many environmentalists consider to be one of the most important issues of the 21st century: water and its contentious role in the global environment.

Concern about the shortage and management of water has now reached worldwide proportions. The results of decades of industry, poor water management, global warming, and overpopulation, among other things, have caught up with the world’s ability to sustain itself, leaving water-deprived populations in ill-health with a bleak future void of agrarian potential and options for self-sustainability. Scientists are also concerned that water might eventually become so scarce that water supplies will become a major point of contention preceding civil conflict.

Exit Art is seeking projects that will foster discourse and urgently respond to this timely issue.

Proposals may be for work in any medium. Please submit a one page description of your project idea; a sketch of the proposed project; a resume; and documentation of your previous work (10–20 slides or images on CD, or a 3 to 5 minute VHS, NTSC video or DVD). Please include a self-addressed stamped envelope for the return of your work. Exit Art is not responsible for returning works submitted without a SASE.