For more than 30 years, American photographer Mariette Pathy Allen has been documenting transgender culture worldwide; in 2004 she won the Lambda Literary Award for her book The Gender Frontier. In her latest series, TransCuba, which was published last year to critical acclaim in a monograph of the same title by Daylight Books, Allen captures the transgender community of Cuba through vibrant color photographs. Her images document the details of the everyday lives of her subjects engaging with family and friends and the community at large, revealing the growing visibility and acceptance of transgender people in a country whose government is transitioning into a more relaxed model of communism under Raúl Castro's presidency.
A selection of Allen's photographs from TransCuba will be the subject of a solo exhibition at the Rayko Photo Center in San Francisco. The opening reception and book signing with
Mariette Pathy Allen will take place Thursday, June 25 from 6-8pm. The exhibition is timely as it takes place as President Barack Obama seeks to restore diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba which have been severed since 1961.
Ms. Castro Espín, the director of the Cuban National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX), contributes a preface to the book. CENESEX is a government-funded body best known for advocating tolerance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender issues on the island. TransCuba also includes an introduction by Allen Frame, and an essay by Wendy Watriss. The text is published in English and Spanish.
The central subjects of TransCuba are Amanda, Nomi and Malu, three remarkable people with whom Allen formed close bonds during visits she made to Cuba in 2012 and 2013. Allen photographed them in the privacy of their homes, at restaurants and clubs, at the beach, on the streets of Havana, and at performances and special events. The transgender people Allen depicts in TransCuba savor their new freedom to be themselves publicly, while continuing to overcome challenges such as health issues and lack of steady work and money. The photographs and supporting interviews provide an intimate and multi-layered portrait of Cuba and this special community of people that is very different from the stereotypical, one-dimensional depiction of transgender people we are so often accustomed to seeing in photographs and in films.
Come meet Mariette Pathy Allen on June 25th at RayKo Photo Center and get a signed copy of her powerful and important monograph, TransCuba.
Mariette Pathy Allen has been photographing the transgender community for over 30 years. Through her artistic practice, she has been a pioneering force in gender consciousness, contributing to numerous cultural and academic publications about gender variance, and lecturing throughout the globe. Her first book Transformations: Crossdressers and Those Who Love Them was groundbreaking in its investigation of a misunderstood community. Her second book The Gender Frontier is a collection of photographs, interviews, and essays covering political activism, youth, and the range of people that identify as transgender in mainland USA. She has also been a valuable consultant to several films about gender and sexuality. Her life's work is currently being archived by Duke University's Rare Book and Manuscripts Library, and the Sallie Bingham Center for Women's Studies. Mariette lives in New York City with a rotating cast of friends and loved ones.
Also on view:
Kiki Ballroom
Photographs by Anja Matthes
Anja Matthes has been pursuing an ongoing project that visually explores the underground NYC Kiki Ballroom scene. This is a community organized by LGBTQ youth of color, which provides an alternative to high-risk behaviors, as well as a support system for a marginalized group that is frequently a target of violence, homelessness, racism, and homophobia. Today there are approximately 10 active Kiki “Houses” in NYC. A House function as a surrogate family for youth often abandoned by their parents, collectively empowering and educating their members. Weekly practices and meetings lead to events called Kiki balls, which are judged competitions infused with a positive HIV education message. Performers are awarded prizes in categories such as voguing, realness, and runway based on their handmade avant-garde creations and performance in dynamic battles.
After being initiated into her House, Matthes noticed the normalcy of issues within the community that any¬where else would represent an epidemic. Those in the scene often engage in escorting and street sex work as a method of survival. Homelessness is prevalent, arrests are common, and HIV infection rates, currently affecting nearly 50% of the community, continue to rise. The House Matthes follows is slowly falling apart following the arrest of DaeDae, the House Father. Without a House parent to organize practices and present their House at balls, the House is at risk of being disbanded and a much needed support network for an at-risk group will disappear. By looking at the problems faced by individuals within a House, we can better understand a community that sees little visibility in the mainstream, but represents an important resource for a marginalized community brimming with artistic talent.
show less
A selection of Allen's photographs from TransCuba will be the subject of a solo exhibition at the Rayko Photo Center in San Francisco. The opening reception and book signing with
Mariette Pathy Allen will take place Thursday, June 25 from 6-8pm. The exhibition is timely as it takes place as President Barack Obama seeks to restore diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba which have been severed since 1961.
Ms. Castro Espín, the director of the Cuban National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX), contributes a preface to the book. CENESEX is a government-funded body best known for advocating tolerance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender issues on the island. TransCuba also includes an introduction by Allen Frame, and an essay by Wendy Watriss. The text is published in English and Spanish.
The central subjects of TransCuba are Amanda, Nomi and Malu, three remarkable people with whom Allen formed close bonds during visits she made to Cuba in 2012 and 2013. Allen photographed them in the privacy of their homes, at restaurants and clubs, at the beach, on the streets of Havana, and at performances and special events. The transgender people Allen depicts in TransCuba savor their new freedom to be themselves publicly, while continuing to overcome challenges such as health issues and lack of steady work and money. The photographs and supporting interviews provide an intimate and multi-layered portrait of Cuba and this special community of people that is very different from the stereotypical, one-dimensional depiction of transgender people we are so often accustomed to seeing in photographs and in films.
Come meet Mariette Pathy Allen on June 25th at RayKo Photo Center and get a signed copy of her powerful and important monograph, TransCuba.
Mariette Pathy Allen has been photographing the transgender community for over 30 years. Through her artistic practice, she has been a pioneering force in gender consciousness, contributing to numerous cultural and academic publications about gender variance, and lecturing throughout the globe. Her first book Transformations: Crossdressers and Those Who Love Them was groundbreaking in its investigation of a misunderstood community. Her second book The Gender Frontier is a collection of photographs, interviews, and essays covering political activism, youth, and the range of people that identify as transgender in mainland USA. She has also been a valuable consultant to several films about gender and sexuality. Her life's work is currently being archived by Duke University's Rare Book and Manuscripts Library, and the Sallie Bingham Center for Women's Studies. Mariette lives in New York City with a rotating cast of friends and loved ones.
Also on view:
Kiki Ballroom
Photographs by Anja Matthes
Anja Matthes has been pursuing an ongoing project that visually explores the underground NYC Kiki Ballroom scene. This is a community organized by LGBTQ youth of color, which provides an alternative to high-risk behaviors, as well as a support system for a marginalized group that is frequently a target of violence, homelessness, racism, and homophobia. Today there are approximately 10 active Kiki “Houses” in NYC. A House function as a surrogate family for youth often abandoned by their parents, collectively empowering and educating their members. Weekly practices and meetings lead to events called Kiki balls, which are judged competitions infused with a positive HIV education message. Performers are awarded prizes in categories such as voguing, realness, and runway based on their handmade avant-garde creations and performance in dynamic battles.
After being initiated into her House, Matthes noticed the normalcy of issues within the community that any¬where else would represent an epidemic. Those in the scene often engage in escorting and street sex work as a method of survival. Homelessness is prevalent, arrests are common, and HIV infection rates, currently affecting nearly 50% of the community, continue to rise. The House Matthes follows is slowly falling apart following the arrest of DaeDae, the House Father. Without a House parent to organize practices and present their House at balls, the House is at risk of being disbanded and a much needed support network for an at-risk group will disappear. By looking at the problems faced by individuals within a House, we can better understand a community that sees little visibility in the mainstream, but represents an important resource for a marginalized community brimming with artistic talent.
For more than 30 years, American photographer Mariette Pathy Allen has been documenting transgender culture worldwide; in 2004 she won the Lambda Literary Award for her book The Gender Frontier. In her latest series, TransCuba, which was published last year to critical acclaim in a monograph of the same title by Daylight Books, Allen captures the transgender community of Cuba through vibrant color photographs. Her images document the details of the everyday lives of her subjects engaging with family and friends and the community at large, revealing the growing visibility and acceptance of transgender people in a country whose government is transitioning into a more relaxed model of communism under Raúl Castro's presidency.
A selection of Allen's photographs from TransCuba will be the subject of a solo exhibition at the Rayko Photo Center in San Francisco. The opening reception and book signing with
Mariette Pathy Allen will take place Thursday, June 25 from 6-8pm. The exhibition is timely as it takes place as President Barack Obama seeks to restore diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba which have been severed since 1961.
Ms. Castro Espín, the director of the Cuban National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX), contributes a preface to the book. CENESEX is a government-funded body best known for advocating tolerance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender issues on the island. TransCuba also includes an introduction by Allen Frame, and an essay by Wendy Watriss. The text is published in English and Spanish.
The central subjects of TransCuba are Amanda, Nomi and Malu, three remarkable people with whom Allen formed close bonds during visits she made to Cuba in 2012 and 2013. Allen photographed them in the privacy of their homes, at restaurants and clubs, at the beach, on the streets of Havana, and at performances and special events. The transgender people Allen depicts in TransCuba savor their new freedom to be themselves publicly, while continuing to overcome challenges such as health issues and lack of steady work and money. The photographs and supporting interviews provide an intimate and multi-layered portrait of Cuba and this special community of people that is very different from the stereotypical, one-dimensional depiction of transgender people we are so often accustomed to seeing in photographs and in films.
Come meet Mariette Pathy Allen on June 25th at RayKo Photo Center and get a signed copy of her powerful and important monograph, TransCuba.
Mariette Pathy Allen has been photographing the transgender community for over 30 years. Through her artistic practice, she has been a pioneering force in gender consciousness, contributing to numerous cultural and academic publications about gender variance, and lecturing throughout the globe. Her first book Transformations: Crossdressers and Those Who Love Them was groundbreaking in its investigation of a misunderstood community. Her second book The Gender Frontier is a collection of photographs, interviews, and essays covering political activism, youth, and the range of people that identify as transgender in mainland USA. She has also been a valuable consultant to several films about gender and sexuality. Her life's work is currently being archived by Duke University's Rare Book and Manuscripts Library, and the Sallie Bingham Center for Women's Studies. Mariette lives in New York City with a rotating cast of friends and loved ones.
Also on view:
Kiki Ballroom
Photographs by Anja Matthes
Anja Matthes has been pursuing an ongoing project that visually explores the underground NYC Kiki Ballroom scene. This is a community organized by LGBTQ youth of color, which provides an alternative to high-risk behaviors, as well as a support system for a marginalized group that is frequently a target of violence, homelessness, racism, and homophobia. Today there are approximately 10 active Kiki “Houses” in NYC. A House function as a surrogate family for youth often abandoned by their parents, collectively empowering and educating their members. Weekly practices and meetings lead to events called Kiki balls, which are judged competitions infused with a positive HIV education message. Performers are awarded prizes in categories such as voguing, realness, and runway based on their handmade avant-garde creations and performance in dynamic battles.
After being initiated into her House, Matthes noticed the normalcy of issues within the community that any¬where else would represent an epidemic. Those in the scene often engage in escorting and street sex work as a method of survival. Homelessness is prevalent, arrests are common, and HIV infection rates, currently affecting nearly 50% of the community, continue to rise. The House Matthes follows is slowly falling apart following the arrest of DaeDae, the House Father. Without a House parent to organize practices and present their House at balls, the House is at risk of being disbanded and a much needed support network for an at-risk group will disappear. By looking at the problems faced by individuals within a House, we can better understand a community that sees little visibility in the mainstream, but represents an important resource for a marginalized community brimming with artistic talent.
read more
A selection of Allen's photographs from TransCuba will be the subject of a solo exhibition at the Rayko Photo Center in San Francisco. The opening reception and book signing with
Mariette Pathy Allen will take place Thursday, June 25 from 6-8pm. The exhibition is timely as it takes place as President Barack Obama seeks to restore diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba which have been severed since 1961.
Ms. Castro Espín, the director of the Cuban National Center for Sex Education (CENESEX), contributes a preface to the book. CENESEX is a government-funded body best known for advocating tolerance of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender issues on the island. TransCuba also includes an introduction by Allen Frame, and an essay by Wendy Watriss. The text is published in English and Spanish.
The central subjects of TransCuba are Amanda, Nomi and Malu, three remarkable people with whom Allen formed close bonds during visits she made to Cuba in 2012 and 2013. Allen photographed them in the privacy of their homes, at restaurants and clubs, at the beach, on the streets of Havana, and at performances and special events. The transgender people Allen depicts in TransCuba savor their new freedom to be themselves publicly, while continuing to overcome challenges such as health issues and lack of steady work and money. The photographs and supporting interviews provide an intimate and multi-layered portrait of Cuba and this special community of people that is very different from the stereotypical, one-dimensional depiction of transgender people we are so often accustomed to seeing in photographs and in films.
Come meet Mariette Pathy Allen on June 25th at RayKo Photo Center and get a signed copy of her powerful and important monograph, TransCuba.
Mariette Pathy Allen has been photographing the transgender community for over 30 years. Through her artistic practice, she has been a pioneering force in gender consciousness, contributing to numerous cultural and academic publications about gender variance, and lecturing throughout the globe. Her first book Transformations: Crossdressers and Those Who Love Them was groundbreaking in its investigation of a misunderstood community. Her second book The Gender Frontier is a collection of photographs, interviews, and essays covering political activism, youth, and the range of people that identify as transgender in mainland USA. She has also been a valuable consultant to several films about gender and sexuality. Her life's work is currently being archived by Duke University's Rare Book and Manuscripts Library, and the Sallie Bingham Center for Women's Studies. Mariette lives in New York City with a rotating cast of friends and loved ones.
Also on view:
Kiki Ballroom
Photographs by Anja Matthes
Anja Matthes has been pursuing an ongoing project that visually explores the underground NYC Kiki Ballroom scene. This is a community organized by LGBTQ youth of color, which provides an alternative to high-risk behaviors, as well as a support system for a marginalized group that is frequently a target of violence, homelessness, racism, and homophobia. Today there are approximately 10 active Kiki “Houses” in NYC. A House function as a surrogate family for youth often abandoned by their parents, collectively empowering and educating their members. Weekly practices and meetings lead to events called Kiki balls, which are judged competitions infused with a positive HIV education message. Performers are awarded prizes in categories such as voguing, realness, and runway based on their handmade avant-garde creations and performance in dynamic battles.
After being initiated into her House, Matthes noticed the normalcy of issues within the community that any¬where else would represent an epidemic. Those in the scene often engage in escorting and street sex work as a method of survival. Homelessness is prevalent, arrests are common, and HIV infection rates, currently affecting nearly 50% of the community, continue to rise. The House Matthes follows is slowly falling apart following the arrest of DaeDae, the House Father. Without a House parent to organize practices and present their House at balls, the House is at risk of being disbanded and a much needed support network for an at-risk group will disappear. By looking at the problems faced by individuals within a House, we can better understand a community that sees little visibility in the mainstream, but represents an important resource for a marginalized community brimming with artistic talent.
show less
Date/Times:
428 Third Street, San Francisco, CA 94107
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