Victoria Brownworth, lesbian/queer author, is ill and in desperate need of help. She has a progressive neuromuscular disease which has left her in a wheelchair, and her partner has left her. Contributions and good wishes may be sent to her, care of Hazel McPhee, 311 W. Seymour St., Philadelphia, PA 19144. An open letter from Victoria Brownworth was sent to the editors by Tee Corinne; copies of the full letter available from Tee or the editors.
Joyce Culver will be teaching a new fall course at the School of Visual Arts, New York City, called “Photography and sex.” Among the topics she will be covering are how artists define the erotic in their work, lesbian, gay and transgender subject matter, sexual identities, and cultural viewpoints in the 20th century. Contributions are welcome from artists in the Gay and Lesbian Caucus who would like their work represented. Contact Joycepeg@aol.com
“Utopia roaming” by Jess Dobkin (“a grassroots, independent lesbian performance art project”) is going on the road again this year. A limited number of appearances will be made during the 1999-2000 season. To host or sponsor a stop or for more information, contact Jess Dobkin at 212-473-1926 or email UtopiaRoam@aol.com
Ray Anne Lockard has joined a lawsuit against the University of Pittsburgh for health benefits for domestic partners. She is the Frick Fine Arts Librarian there and a co-chair of the Caucus. The complaint was originally filed in January 1996 by Deborah Henson, former law professor. More info from Ray Anne at addresses listed in caucus officer listing.
Cyndra MacDowall is one of four artists in an October 1999 show entitled “In a different light” at the Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow (see calendar listing). She will be reporting on the show and related activities for Fuse magazine, published in Toronto. Related activities include the Glasgay! Festival from October 22-31 and the Interpride Congress on October 22-24, as well as Glasgow being the UK City of Architecture for 1999 and a “Connected Cities Congress” in October. More info from Cyndra at cynmac@interlog.com or from Alice Angus, curator at alangus@u.genie.co.uk
Sheila Pepe reports she had solo shows at the Bunting Institute (Radcliffe College) and Jennjoy Gallery (San Francisco) this past spring, as well as being in group shows at the Boston Athenaeum and at Apex Art, New York. In November, she will be have solo shows at Judy Goldman Fine Art and the Mills Gallery, both in Boston. She moved from Boston to New York in August.
Martin Wong died on August 12th in San Francisco. He is described in the New York times obituary (Aug. 18) as “a painter whose meticulous visionary realism is among the lasting legacies of New York’s East Village art scene of the 1980’s and a precursor of the identity-driven work of the 90’s.” He was the subject of a retrospective at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in 1998.
Joe Ziolkowski moved from Chicago to Detroit in August, to take a new position at the Center for Creative Studies. His website is still at http://www.joe-ziolkowski.com
The Creative Capital Foundation has been established by nearly two dozen foundations and philanthropists in reaction to cuts in federal arts funding for individuals. They will support artists who challenge convention. (New York times, May 3, 1999, p. E1, E7)
The Nebraska Supreme Court ruled on 9 July 1999 that gay bar operators would have to tone down the sexual component of their wall decorations. They ruled in the case of Run Bar, finding three pictures to be constitutionally unprotected obscenity. (Lesbian & gay New York, Aug. 12, 1999, p. 13)
The Stonewall Inn on Christopher Street was declared a national landmark in June 1999. The current bar is not the same bar that was raided in 1969 (it was a Chinese restaurant and bagel shop before becoming a bar again in the late 1980s). Andrew Dolkart prepared the 40-page submission for landmark status. (New York times, June 26, 1999, p. B1, B6)