By Aubrey F. Burghardt
Word on the street is that the gays have an agenda, y’all. Find “yas kween” sneaking into your lingo? Part of the agenda. That seemingly harmless French tuck? Part of the agenda. In fact, Tumblr has created an entire thematic discourse on the gays’ agenda to infiltrate heteronormative life, humoring us Internet scrollers and trollers.
Well, here’s my gay agenda—surprise, it’s art–based. I’m here to disrupt your mundane arts and culture happenings to bring you the latest leading queer-lensed creative endeavors. Warning—there’s nothing subtle about the queerness of these events. It’s just not in our nature.
Throughout September and October, these events present the opportunity to peacock your queerness while acquiring some intellectual cultured acuity. So come out, come out wherever you are, you saucy thing, you.
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First up is the opening reception for Moon Shot on September 20. Hosted by the Moody Center for the Arts at Rice University, the exhibition will include the works of queer icons Robert Rauschenberg and Andy Warhol, alongside artists Laurie Anderson, Siah Armajani, Nancy Graves, Rachel Rose, Katy Schimert, and Michelle Stuart. Like most art exhibitions, there will be booze and bites. And they’re free.
The opening reception for ‘Moon Shot’ will be held on September 20 at the Moody Center.
While it is well known that Andy Warhol blossomed from his once-closeted self into an eccentric and sexually-fluid artist, Robert Rauschenberg’s identity as a queer artist has received less spotlight. Rauschenberg’s life is often interpreted through a heteronormative lens, as he was briefly married to artist Susan Weil, before quietly taking male lovers—including a fling with fellow contemporary artist Cy Twombly and rumored relations with Jasper Johns. “It’s no surprise that collaboration was the soul of creation for these artists, who created a queer visual vocabulary before the actual language existed,” journalist Zachary Small commented on Rauschenberg’s romantic relationships. Seeing the Moody Center present two queer artists, Warhol and Rauschenberg, side by side is a joy.
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Also on Friday, September 20, the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston (CAMH)’s regular program, Art at Noon, will be hosted by queer media artist and film buff Stephanie Saint Sanchez. Saint Sanchez, who holds many titles and accolades—founder and executive director of the all-Latina Señorita Cinema film festival, QFest board member, DiverseWorks artist advisory board member, and co-founder of GenderReel Houston—will be discussing the exhibition Steven Evans: If I can’t dance, it’s not my revolution! and how Evans’ work exploring the connections between music, language, memory, queer identity, and collectivity relates to current queer issues in Houston. It is this type of queer-on-queer dialogue that helps to strengthen our collective identity and sense of community.
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The Cirque Du Freak art show, being held at Spring Street Studios on September 21, is your chance to get your freak on! This circus-themed, 21-and-over show will be crawling with freaks, art lovers, and the outlandishly obscene, all looking to give back to the city’s diverse artistic community. The night, sponsored by Artists for Artists, will feature a silent and live auction of over 100 pieces of artwork, with all proceeds benefitting emergency recovery grants for artists, designed to assist artists experiencing career-threatening medical emergencies. “Cirque du Freak will be a night of immersive vaudeville entertainment, sideshow performances, costumes, avant-garde food, and an open bar,” says Artists for Artists vice president Amber Slaughter. “Come and party in a vintage circus.”
When asked what makes the evening especially queer, Slaughter points to the event’s roster, chocked-full of queer artists like Kermit Patrick Eisenhut, Wood Fancher Anthony, Stephanie Gonzalez, Justin Okieth, and Robin Baker, a recent recipient of an Artists for Artists emergency grant. Plus, topping this beautiful freak tent will be Emma Vauxdevil, a local burlesque dancer. We queers love a good show.
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Bathe yourself in light and sound at Eternal 30, a 30-day sound and light installation funded in part by the Houston Arts Alliance and hosted at Flatland Gallery. The installation, which kicked off September 1, features a rotating cast of artists in residence and weekly live performances by international artists. A sculpture by LGBTQ artist Ronald Llewellyn Jones will be on display in the front yard of the gallery for the duration of the installation. Additionally, queer artist Emilý Æyer (co-creator of Cell Lust), will serenade attendees with a live performance on September 20.
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But the excitement doesn’t stop in September. On October 17, DiverseWorks will hold its very promising Bayou City B’all: A Night of Performance, Fashion, and Music Beyond the Gender Binary. This B’all is no ordinary heteronormative high school dance. “[Bayou City B’all is a] collective event [that] aims to celebrate the music, culture, and art of LGBTQIA+, gender non-conforming, genderqueer, and non-binary creatives,” DiverseWorks advertises. The event seeks to highlight Houston’s vibrant LGBTQIA+ scene by creating the opportunity for queer artists to showcase their art while engaging in liberation and fearless play and production.
So go! Go flaunt your queerness, push your agenda, and disrupt the status quo—and enjoy some amazing art while you’re at it.
