Installation of Twilight Inks at LMCC Art Center on Governor’s Island
Winter, 2023
Winter, 2023
My long-term project is to create 1000 ink paintings on 7x7” paper tiles, each depicting queer underground life before the Stonewall riots. I began the series in 2021 as a daily practice, inspired by research for a biographical screenplay about Carlson Wade, a literary agent and exposé author who lived a double life as a conservative firebrand and a fiercely discreet gay man in the 1960s. As a queer person raised in a homophobic environment during the height of the AIDS crisis in the 1980s, fear also drove me to live a double life as I came of age.
To this day, the pre-Stonewall era, commonly referred to as the Homophile Era, remains obscured due to the deliberate destruction of queer historical materials at the time. My research for the screenplay led me to various archives where I discovered a myriad of fragments from this hidden history. Using fountain pen ink with a brush, I began a daily practice of creating small paintings of queer individuals who lived in the shadows of society. Through this practice, I started to create a tangible connection to my queer ancestors who dared to live authentically in a world that sought to erase them. Each piece is an indelible testament to our Queer ancestors’ defiance and refusal to conform. I want everyone who sees this series to feel the same connection to our history.
With conservatives banging the drums of intolerance and pushing to vilify and outlaw our community, this project is not just about preserving history—it's about standing
I've just hit the 200 mark with the goal of creating 1000 inks.