QUEER|ART|PRIDE is an annual summer festival celebrating work by the organization’s vibrant community of more than 200 LGBTQ+ artists.
Queer|Art is excited to present Queer|Art|Pride 2023—the 7th annual summer festival celebrating work by the organization’s vibrant community of more than 200 LGBTQ+ artists. Queer|Art|Pride convenes a diverse network of artists, performers, writers, and creatives to offer a fabulous array of public programs throughout the month of June.
First, on June 4th, Queer|Art presents its first ever Drag Brunch, hosted by Cecilia Gentili and Chiquitita! The daytime event celebrates community, queer expression, and the art of drag over drinks and delicious food at the East Village staple, Pangea. Presented by an illustrious host committee including Joshua Allen, Candystore, Devin-Norelle, and Fran Tirado, Queer|Art’s Drag Brunch will feature two shows at 11 AM and 2 PM.
Later in June, Queer|Art partners with Body Hack, a collectively run party and mutual aid project that serves both as a community space and decentralized fundraising platform for trans and nonbinary BIPOC groups. Kicking off New York City’s Pride weekend from 3–11 PM on Friday, June 23rd, Queer|Art and Body Hack will transform Nowadays into an extravaganza of both indoor/outdoor festivities. This two-part public event will feature a daytime queer vendor fair (3-8PM) and an evening dance party (8PM-6AM), complete with live performances and DJ sets. The event will fundraise for three BIPOC trans-led organizations fighting to protect trans people in the states most impacted by anti-trans violence and new legislation: InTRANSitive (Little Rock, AK), The McKenzie Project (Miami, FL) and TKO Society (Selma, AL).
Read more about our Pride celebration and all its sensational guest stars below!
QUEER|ART x BODY HACK
FUNDRAISING FOR TRANS LIVES ACROSS THE SOUTH
On Friday, June 23rd, Queer|Art and Body Hack are taking over Nowadays! To celebrate Pride month like never before, the 16,000-square-foot space located in Ridgewood along the Brooklyn/Queens border will host the ultimate extravaganza of both indoor and outdoor festivities over the course of 15 hours, from 3PM–6AM. The event will fundraise for three BIPOC trans-led organizations: InTRANSitive (Little Rock, AK), The McKenzie Project (Miami, FL) and TKO Society (Selma, AL).
*NOTE: ADVANCE TICKETS HAVE NOW SOLD OUT, BUT THERE WILL BE MORE THAN ENOUGH TICKETS AT THE DOOR! SEE YOU FRIDAY, JUNE 23RD!*
Nowadays
In the afternoon, the sprawling backyard will feature a queer vendor fair featuring work by local artisans and small queer and trans owned brands, where guests can browse clothing, zines, original artworks, on-site tattoo services, jewelry, tarot/astrology readings, and plenty more from 3–8 PM. You can meet all 29 of our amazing vendors and read about their work here!
Indoor programming will include the launch of JesusDevil: The Parables, the new book from Black queer feminist scholar and 2022 QAM Mentor Alexis De Veaux. The book is an anti-fiction work forthcoming within adrienne maree brown’s Emergent Strategy Series this summer, and its official launch will entail a live reading, a short discussion, and a special book signing.
Left to right: stefa marin alarcon photographed by Lissyelle Laricchia; Anh Vo photographed by Yekaterina Gyadu; Crackhead Barney photographed by Ben Weiss; Dualité photographed by Bishop Elegino.
In the evening, stick around for live performances from 2022 QAM Fellow Anh Vo, 2022 QA Prize Winner stefa marin alarcon, and performance artist Crackhead Barney, rapper Dualitè, and a screening of new video work by 2020 Illuminations Grant Winner Keioui Keijaun Thomas. To close out the night, the event will transition into Body Hack’s hallmark late night party guaranteed to burn until daybreak, with DJ sets by Archangel, Battyjack, Cisne, Deathrayz, DJ Delish, Soo Intoit, Sp3cial K, Zolita, Zaida Zane, and 8ulentina (8PM-6AM)!
*NOTE: ADVANCE TICKETS HAVE NOW SOLD OUT, BUT THERE WILL BE MORE THAN ENOUGH TICKETS AT THE DOOR! SEE YOU FRIDAY, JUNE 23RD!*
WHO WE’RE FUNDRAISING FOR
Queer|Art’s central Pride event will fundraise for three BIPOC trans-led organizations fighting to protect trans people in the states most impacted by anti-trans violence and legislation:
Intransitive works to advance the cause of Trans liberation in Arkansas through art, education, advocacy, organizing and culture in order to create effective systemic change and on-the-ground impact. They focus on supporting and building the leadership of Trans people with the commitment to a vision and strategy rooted in the grassroots experience of Trans migrants of color. Intransitive creates intergenerational spaces in which all of a Trans person’s identities are honored and affirmed.
The McKenzie Project Inc. is a Black trans-led organization in South Florida. They aim to uplift Black transgender and Nonbinary individuals throughout Miami Dade, Broward County, and Liberty City, especially those who are experiencing homelessness, engaging in survival sex work, or living with HIV. Their mission is to build community and center spaces by and for Black transgender and nonbinary individuals to promote entrepreneurship and innovation.
The Knights and Orchids Society builds the power of TLGB+ Black people across the South by providing a spectrum of health and wellness services. Their goal is to help more Black trans, same-gender-loving, and Black queer folks access high-quality primary care and endocrinology services. Their services include care coordination, health screenings, food pantry, community groups, housing support, and more.
ABOUT BODY HACK
“We believe in prioritizing a mindset of abundance over scarcity. We believe that trans people are brilliantly resourceful, and that we don’t need to depend on people who don’t understand or value who we are and what we do in order to survive. We strive to build interdependence within our communities, we can get what we need by supporting one another. We refuse to be respectable in our fundraising, we can be our whole selves when we ask for support and when we give it. We believe organizing should be fun and feel fulfilling in order to be sustainable. We honor the long standing relationship our communities have to nightlife—as a refuge and space to seek pleasure and possibility.”
—Body Hack Organizers
Body Hack is a collectively run party and mutual aid project that serves simultaneously as a community space and decentralized fundraising platform for trans and nonbinary BIPOC initiatives. Originally a happy hour for trans and nonbinary people set in a tiny Brooklyn dive bar, Body Hack has grown into a transnational project seeking to model a world where trans communities can thrive interdependently. Body Hack now throws monthly parties at Nowadays in Ridgewood (Queens), creating space for trans people to gather, celebrate, and extend support to one another. Each party doubles as a fundraiser for a trans-related initiative, and has raised over $300k in the last five years.
ABOUT ALEXIS DE VEAUX
Alexis De Veaux, image courtesy of the artist
Alexis De Veaux is a black queer feminist independent scholar whose internationally known work is published in six languages. She has been publishing fiction, poetry, plays, memoirs, and children’s literature since 1973, and her work is anthologized in numerous collections. De Veaux is the author of Yabo and Warrior Poet: A Biography of Audre Lorde; and was tenured faculty at the University at Buffalo, Department of Women’s Studies, for more than twenty years, mentoring a new generation of interdisciplinary scholars of black, feminist, and queer studies. She is a 2022 Queer|Art|Mentorship Mentor, and was the the recipient of the 2022 Pamela Sneed Award for Black Queer|Art Mentorship Artists & Organizers.
Cover of JesusDevil: The Parables
Our Pride celebration will entail the public launch of De Veaux’s new book, JesusDevil: The Parables. Evocative and experimental, JesusDevil is a nonlinear tale of black life and spiritual expression. Writing in a style she calls “afiction,” Alexis De Veaux expands and moves beyond traditional narrative, following the adventures of Fhill, a black, queer spirit who has taken human form. Neither male nor female, Fhill moves fluidly and disruptively across concepts of identity, passing through the nine “parables” that comprise this text. Examining aspects of what it means to be black and human—from a nonhuman perspective—Fhill’s liminal nature redefines social and literary categories, exploring social constructions of blackness as well as themes of desire, memory, sex, revenge, and more. The book is a daring new work and crowning achievement from a veteran storyteller.
ENTER THR QUEER|ART|PRIDE BLUNDSTONE RAFFLE
Image above, left to right: KT Pe Benito, Río Sofia, and '20-'21 QAM Fellows Mev Luna, Erica Cardwell, jess pretty, Eva Reign, Brian Alarcon, Surya Swilley, and Nandita Raman, all sporting Blundstone Boots.
To celebrate Pride month, Queer|Art is raffling off 20 FREE pairs of beautiful Blundstone Boots! The lucky winners will be able to choose from any of the boots available on the Blundstone website (except for the Heritage collection). Each raffle entry ticket is $5, and buying more than one ticket increases your chances of winning! The raffle is officially accepting entries until June 30th. Enter now, enter multiple times, and spread the word to anyone in the market for some new fabulous footwear—good luck!
All proceeds directly benefit Queer|Art’s (QA) mission to support LGBTQ+ artists across disciplines and generations. We thank Blundstone for their generous support of this initiative, and our mission at large!
QUEER|ART|PRIDE
DRAG BRUNCH
Rise and shine—it’s time for brunch! Grab your shades and your purse, and prepare to eat, drink, and throw cash at Queer|Art’s first-ever Pride Drag Brunch, hosted by Cecilia Gentili and Chiquitita. This dazzling event will convene artists from QA’s Mentorship program and fans of all things drag over drinks and delicious Mediterranean-Italian fare at Pangea, the East Village restaurant and supper club known for championing alt-cabaret shows. Limited free tickets are available (with a food/beverage minimum), as well as extra special VIP tickets. VIP tickets include the price of meal, drinks, gratuity, VIP seating, as well as an exclusive gift from the queens. Learn more about the ticketing tiers and get yours today here!
MEET THE DRAG BRUNCH STARS
Cecilia Gentili is an advocate, organizer, QA Board Member, and storyteller working at the intersections of sex work, immigrant rights, incarceration issues, and trans liberation. As a performer Cecilia starred as Ms. Orlando in the hit FX Show Pose. She has also performed in her one-woman show The Knife Cuts Both Ways, and in countless storytelling events across the country. Cecilia’s recently published her epistolary memoir Faltas: Letters to Everyone in My Hometown Who Isn’t My Rapist (Little Puss, 2022) won the 2023 Stonewall Book Award.
Chiquitita is a drag performer, event producer and visual artist. Since being crowned Miss Bushwig in 2018, she has utilized the stage as a platform to amplify queer performance. Through celebrated tribute-cabaret shows, and projects to uplift her community, Chiquitita continues to push boundaries what being a drag performer means. For the second year in a row, Chiquitita has organized the Brooklyn Museum's La Gala, a fundraiser for the Museum's public programs. She and her work have been profiled in Allure, W Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Vogue.
MEET THE DRAG BRUNCH HOST COMMITTEE
Joshua Allen, image courtesy of the artist.
Candystore, image courtesy of the artist.
Devin-Norelle, image courtesy of the artist.
Fran Tirado, image courtesy of the artist.
The Queer|Art|Pride Drag Brunch is organized in conjunction with an esteemed Host Committee, including:
Joshua Allen: Joshua Allen (they/them) is a nonbinary artist and activist from Brooklyn, New York, and a founding organizer of the Black Excellence Collective. They are currently serving as a member of Resist foundation’s 2020 funding group and working on their debut collection of prose and poetry titled All the Things I Never Said. Allen is also a philanthropic advisor at the Black Trans Fund.
Candystore: Candystore was a 2018-2019 artist-in-residence with Shandaken: Governor’s Island and a 2018-2019 fellow in the Queer|Art|Mentorship program. In 2019, she-he was one of four recipients of the Shannon Michael Cane Award from Printed Matter, which allowed shimher the opportunity to produce and self publish her debut, *SOLD OUT* book of poetry, Hi Angels: Poems by Candystore, which then begat the 2020 extended version, Hi Angels: DELUXE—also sold out, sorry. Candystore’s writing and art have been published in PAPER Magazine, Phile Magazine, Riot of Perfume, Precog Mag, RFD, and others. She-he has performed abroad and around New York City, most notably at MoMA PS1 (though it was only in the book store) and Dixon Place (but in that weird area between the bar and the bathroom). Candystore also performs every time she-he uses a public, "binary-themed" restroom. In shimher spare time, Candystore creates and produces a highly chaotic, raunchy TV project and live stage show called Pubic Access. She-he loves dick and lives in Brooklyn, NY with a snake named Mascara.
Devin-Norelle: Devin-Norelle (ze/zim/zis) is a professional model, trans advocate, media figure, public speaker, and opinion writer, with published work in GQ, Teen Vogue, Allure, them, and Out Magazine, among others. Ze has walked in New York Fashion Week shows for Chromat and dapperQ, and was featured in the 2019 Stonewall 50 Pride Campaigns for New York City Pride and the clothing company, Bonobos. In 2019, ze was nominated for The Queerties Underground Style Trendsetter, and was later awarded the Callen Lorde Transcendence Award for ze's advocacy and uplifting of the trans and non binary communities. Devin-Norelle facilities D&I Gender Expansive trainings individually and through the Phluid Project’s “G.E.T. Phluid” Program. As a member or NYC Pride's Community Council, ze has helped guide Heritage of Pride towards reducing police presence for future Pride marches and events. Devin-Norelle is based in ze’s hometown, Harlem, New York City, as well as Los Angeles, California, and London, UK for consulting, modeling, acting, or other projects.
Fran Tirado: As a writer, speaker, editorial leader, creative producer, podcaster, and consultant for queer and marginalized stories, Fran helps cultivate audience engagement strategy, editorial vision, and community authentication. Client companies include Netflix, Nike, Google, HBO, Instagram, Squarespace, Microsoft, and Mailchimp, and has spoken at institutions like Harvard, Yale, Vassar, Juilliard, Northwestern, and NYU. Fran's work has been featured in places like Vogue, New York Mag, The Washington Post, USA Today, People, TIME, NBC, BBC, PBS, NPR, Newsweek, Buzzfeed, W, Interview, Elle, The Cut, Glamour, InStyle, Refinery29, GQ, Complex, Vox, VICE, AV Club, Adweek, and Good Morning America. Their work has won them Brooklyn's 30 Under 30, the Stonewall Vision Award, and MTV's inaugural Logo Legend award. The NYT called them a "queer champion.
PRIDE ARCHIVE
2022
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2020
2019
2018
2017