Artist: Rami George
Curator: Jameson Paige
Fabricator: Hannah Declercq
Installation: Heidi Ratanavanich and Kirby Mckenzie
Presented by: Mural Arts Philadelphia at Louis Kahn Park, Philadelphia, PA
Partners: John J. Wilcox, Jr. Archives at the William Way LGBT Community Center, FORTUNE, KYKY Archives, Blue Stoop, Philadelphia Parks and Recreation
AND INTO THE STREETS was a temporary public art project by artist Rami George sited in Louis Kahn Park, in Philadelphia. The project pulls archival images and materials from the now defunct LGBTQ news publication, Au Courant (1982–2000). George threads together photographs of underrepresented histories and voices that depict a queer cultural memory of Philadelphia life, many of which were never published. Displays of public and private intimacies, political protests, and joyful celebrations were arranged nonlinearly, opening potential for new resonances to emerge as the images leave the solitude of the archives and gain new life in the streets. The result is a complex portrait that foregrounds not just LGBTQ life, but more importantly its intersections with many other hopes and struggles for a world built on care and solidarity.
The project builds upon significant time George has spent in the John J. Wilcox, Jr. Archives at the William Way LGBT Community Center, Philadelphia’s most extensive collection of historical LGBTQ materials and ephemera. It is also sited in Louis Kahn Park, the only public space in Philadelphia’s Gayborhood that has historically been the origin point for Dyke March each year and a gathering place for the community. AND INTO THE STREETS opened during Pride month as a call to foreground politics in the year’s celebrations. Many of the political issues that emerged in the installation remain hurdles, such as affordable housing, disability rights, and the health and well-being of trans and gender nonconforming people. Recurring individuals make appearances in the featured images as well, some of whom have passed and others who remain stalwart activists and anchors in this community. There is a will for the images to speak on how the past is always with us, either in memory or in place, and how the livelihood of LGBTQ communities in particular rely on strong bonds forged across lines of difference and across time. Grounded in time yet still able to speak, the lingering traces in these images breathe new life into the present, coalescing a joy and politics that calls us into the streets and into a world we are still becoming.
FORTUNE, an artist collective by and for queer and trans Asian publics, designed a limited edition tshirt pulling archival materials from Au Courant that specifically highlight the Asian diaspora and Philadelphia’s Chinatown. Proceeds raised from the sale of the shirts went to support the Save Chinatown Coalition and RICE (Restaurant Industry for Chinatown’s Existence) in their efforts to block the 76ers Arena building plans in 2023. This was printed by Latziyela Prints, a queer print
KYKY Archives produced two limited run posters highlighting Black lesbian, femme, and trans archival materials. These were distributed for free at all events and beyond the project’s life.
Public Programs included:
~ Queer Readings ~ In collaboration with Blue Stoop, an evening of readings in the park by David Acosta, Kris Malcolm Bell, Emma Copley Eisenburg, Adiah Silver, and Taylor Townes.
~ Conversation with Rami George, Jameson Paige, and TK Smith (Assistant Curator at the Barnes Foundation).
~ Drag in the Streets! ~ Party in the park with performances by the Moon Baby, Xiomara Villa, and Savvy Baby. DJ sets by Lindo, DJ Cookie, DJ Andi, and DJ Kit.
~ A Community Revisited ~ An informal reunion and storyshare with individuals pictured in George’s installation. Led by community leaders Chris Bartlett (Executive Director of William Way LGBT Community Center) and David Acosta (Artistic Director of Casa de Duende and founder of GALAEI).
This project was supported by the City of Philadelphia and Creative Philadelphia.