Sunlight peeking into my "clean" studio space. Working on sketches for my upcoming solo show at Eye Lounge in December. 

Thursday, October 24, 5:30 PM
Oklahoma State University, Barlet 109

Norris Lecture: Aren Z. Aizura and Emmett Ramstad, “Ungilting the Gold Star Gay.” The talk focuses on the late Sam Steward, a celebrated tattoo artist during the 1950s and 60s and photographer, professor, and pornographer who worked with Alfred Kinsey’s Institute for Sex Research. A reception will follow in the Gardiner Art Gallery .The event is free and open to the public. Co-Sponsored by the Norris Foundation, the Dept. of Art, Gender and Women's Studies and American Studies.

Now that the weather has gotten nicer in Phoenix, I am venturing into my studio and making good use of my new whittling tools. Sausage mountains? Hot dog landscapes? We shall see. 

Check out: Ephemeral Sprawl, an exhibition of contemporary printed ephemera co-curated by The Print Center and the collaborative art blog and occasional arts producer, Printeresting.org in Philadelphia until November 23rd, 2013. 

http://printcenter.org/ephemeralsprawl/

My piece, 1995, is in the show. Here is my accompanying text panel about the piece: 

My Aunt Mary told me about Giovanni’s Room bookstore when I said I was moving to Philly. She used to buy lesbian crime novels by mail order from them before Amazon Bookstore (not the online store, but the real lesbian bookstore in Minneapolis, named after strong, one breasted women). When I arrived in Philly, I visited Giovanni’s Room and Skip, a long time employee, remembered Aunt Mary’s name from the mail order days- days of newsletters with book prices, a phone number you could call and books slipped into brown envelopes for shipping. This is the story I think of when I look at the many boxes of ephemera that Giovanni’s Room donated to the John J. Wilcox Jr. archive. When I asked Ed, Giovanni’s Room owner, about exhibiting the cash register receipt rolls, he was worried they would reveal the identity of the patrons- exposing secret purchases in the form of abbreviated titles of porn mags and disappointing gay films that are either too sweet or too brutal. He consented to the exhibition when I assured him there are no names on the receipts, just numbers, abridged titles, and events listings. These documents remind me of clusters of bodies and people with nerdish impulses, like a beautiful pre-internet community finding themselves; they represent a collection of book and magazine buyers and people who bought rainbow stickers for their cars. They also remind me of the hours I spent in the bookstore pouring over a filthy Sam Steward book I wanted but was gone by the time payday came around, and of cramming into a the attic like upstairs for queer readings. And while I was writing this, Ed announced retirement and Giovanni’s Room might have to close its doors. Is the era of gay bookstores now over? Who will take down Aunt Mary’s name and address when she buys her lesbian crime novels?  

SUPER NATURE IN CHICAGO, OCT. 10TH-12TH, FREE

The evening length piece will take place at The Storefront Theater, October 10-12th at 7.30pm, October 13th at 2pm, free!
Click here for more information. 

The installation will take place at the The Chicago Rooms, October 11 & 12, 12-5pm, free! Click here for more information.