In the 1950s, the Fire Island hamlet was a refuge for gay men and lbians. Dozens of enlarged photos om the era are now on view outsi the New-York Historil Society.
Contents:
- GAY BAR VS ART GALLERY: SHOULD QUEER EXHIBNS BE RECLAIMED BY LGBT+ VENU?
- CONTROVERSY OVER THE ENOLA GAY EXHIBN
- CHERRY GROVE, WHERE GAY NEW YORKERS BEME ‘THEIR REAL SELV’
GAY BAR VS ART GALLERY: SHOULD QUEER EXHIBNS BE RECLAIMED BY LGBT+ VENU?
For the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II, the Natnal Air and Space Mm proposed a ntroversial exhibn that displayed the Enola Gay. * gay exhibition *
Drawg om the archiv of different queer spac across London, the show terrogated the ongog stat of the queer bar and gay cisg spots LGBT+ muni, as well as the relatnships between the gallery and the queer space. In particular, Queer Spac hoed two works by Prem Sahib, whose work als wh an explicly tactile, gay male sexualy and often mak reference to gay bathhoe or sna culture. A work om Hannah Qulan and Rosie Hastgs’s @Gaybar project, which brgs together flyers, gay magaze cuttgs and health rmatn brochur om 170 gay bars across the UK, also featured.
At the same time, the fight for the rights of gay, lbian, bisexual and transgenr people, spurred by the 1969 Stonewall rts, was lerally transformg the cultural and social landspe of New York Cy.
Gay men sudnly felt ee to sunbathe on the piers naked, cise, and have sex public. While artists llaborated to transform the buildgs of Pier 34 to makhift art studs and exhibn spac, gay men were nvertg Pier 46 to what Delmas Howe lls an "arena for sexual theater.
CONTROVERSY OVER THE ENOLA GAY EXHIBN
He is thor of Male Dire: The Homoerotic Amerin Art and Ambn and Love Morn Amerin Art, and edor wh Alejandro Anrs and Diana Ln of The Social and the Real, also published by PSU Prs. Photographs by Matthew MorrocLike many gay men searchg for timacy the morn day, the photographer Matthew Morroc has found his share of onle.
Many of his panns had survived both the AIDS crisis and heights of homophobia unknown to younger generatns. Jane Ward, thor of the 2015 Not Gay: Sex Between Straight Whe Men, which ed the viral term “bro jobs” to scribe straight men havg sex wh each other.
) The lights are dimmed slightly and soft mic plays while the men gather, eher alone or small clters, and proceed to jerk off, all the while keepg nversatn to a mimum to ensure everyone stays the of the atten at Ra Cy Jacks are gay men. He nducts annual surveys of the group, and he says that while the majory of members are gay, about 10 percent of the Seattle Jacks’ 300 or so members self-intify as heterosexual, wh 25 percent intifyg as bisexual. ” Acrdg to a Slate piece on the phenomenon, approximately 10 percent of BateWorld’s ers self-intify as straight, while 5 percent refed to self-intify eher way—a number that pal parison to the more than 44, 000 gay ers of the se (50 percent of s dience; 30 percent intifi as bi, while 5 percent would “rather not say”), but is nohels signifint.
CHERRY GROVE, WHERE GAY NEW YORKERS BEME ‘THEIR REAL SELV’
As Slate wrer Kyle Mta put , “that’s a lot of not-gay dus wh profil on a webse for men who like to masturbate wh other men. ” And given the strict and arguably regrsive s erng male sexualy, which dictate that any man who so much as looks at another man has to be, if not gay, probably bisexual, ’s surprisg that so many ostensibly straight men are terted watchg other guys touch said, for some straight guys who attend jackoff clubs, lookg at or touchg other penis may almost be bi the pot.
Ward, the thor of Not Gay, says that some men wh exhibnistic tennci jerk off ont of other men as a way to get validatn—say, a pliment about the size of their genals—that they may not necsarily get om their female partners. While both of the experienc are not unmon for men their teens and twenti, they’re stnchly homoerotic nohels—and ’s also worth notg that there isn’t que an equivalent for young women.