Adrian Apollo’s Queer Current Blog

 David Wojnarowicz was a gay artist during the AIDS epidemic that was briefly mentioned during the "After Stonewall" documentary. I have always loved his work as both an artist and an activist and I thought it would be a nice opportunity to share some more images of his work! He made a lot of work before he tragically died of AIDS, and he worked in almost every medium imaginable. He participated in the ACT UP march that was mentioned in the "After Stonewall" documentary. The image directly below is of him at the march. Please feel free to browse through some of my favorite works of his and let me know what you think! :) I have his burning house stencil tattooed on my right leg.   

  When I think about Queer Design, I envision it in the realm of claiming a space within an already oppressive system. Chapter 3 explains the affects of the Great Depression and wartime struggle on the American population as a whole, but also LGBT Americans as well. During Prohibition, there were many entertainment based establishments that had to go underground in order to sell alcohol. I think the first example of queer design that I recognized within this reading is the ability to not only claim these spaces as places to be openly queer but to also claim them as a means of income. Tiny Davis was able to be a proud lesbian amongst the nightlife, and she built a career off of performing. Queer people are resourceful, and they were able to redesign the cultural norms and social aspects of American life. As factories opened up, and the economic struggle occurred, lesbians were able to adopt masculine roles and means of existence. They could wear pants, work for themselves, and live ...

   Watching “After Stonewall” after having viewed “Before Stonewall” during our class felt like a concise explanation of queer politics and life from as far back as the 20’s up until the late 90’s. I knew limited information about queer politics and social issues during these times, so it was a great opportunity to get informed. In order for our twentieth century views regarding queer folks to exist, many hardships had to be endured by the LGBT community before and after the Stonewall riots occurred. “Before Stonewall” displayed the struggles of being closeted, and not only the fear of coming out, but the violence and struggle that it promised as well. Stonewall itself was an event that would prove to be the catalyst for the queer liberation movements to come afterwards, and the power it breathed into queer people is evident when reflecting upon the movements that followed it which are shown in “After Stonewall”. Queer people have always existed even if it was in silence and d...

  When reflecting upon the intense emotion and retaliation of the queer population during the Stonewall riots, it is instances such as the LIFE Magazine article, Homosexuality in America, (that the TIMES article discusses) that remind us of the misconceptions about queer folks that straight people held at the time. The LIFE magazine article reinforced stereotypes of gay people and demeaned their natural existence claiming it to be a “choice”. However, in a way, it is articles like these that introduce queer existence to unknowing straight people. Is belittling a group of people an adequate manner of introducing them to a large and unknowing portion of the general population? I do not think so. What pits the LIFE magazine article against CBS’s The Homosexuals? I believe that even though CBS’s documentary at times was clouded by the cis and straight status quo, it did a better job in painting an unbiased picture of queer American existence than the LIFE article did. Along with this,...