About this Event
Join us for the opening celebration of David Wojnarowicz: Arthur Rimbaud in New York.
During his first trip to France in 1978, David Wojnarowicz (1954-1992) was keen to immerse himself in the Parisian environs where a century earlier poet Arthur Rimbaud had tried to live as a runaway teenager in the hopes of becoming a poet. Rimbaud’s short and peripatetic youth was memorialized in two volumes of poetry that, in addition to propelling French literature into modernity, have become obligatory reading to young poets across the globe, who, like him, find in poetry a path to transcend the ordinary.
Upon his return to New York, Wojnarowicz was able to put in perspective the situation of decay and economic depression that brought the city to the brink of collapse, intuitively connecting it with the state of anarchy that took over Paris during the years of the Commune in the early 1870s. This parallel also allowed him to understand his own predicament as the child of a disrupted household, having to hone his survivor skills in the streets of New York at a very young age. Considered in this context, the series of photo-performances that Wojnarowicz produced in collaboration with a small coterie of friends between 1978 and 1979 stands as an important document of the era that not only gives us entry into the artist’s state of mind at a turning point in his life—as he was making a transition from writing onto the visual arts—but that also documents areas of New York City that have been radically transformed. Learn more about the show here.
Curated by Antonio Sergio Bessa
About the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art
The Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art provides a platform for artistic exploration through multi-faceted queer perspectives. We embrace the power of the arts to inspire, explore, and foster understanding of the rich diversity of LGBTQIA+ experiences. We aim to be a home for queer art, artists, scholars, activists and allies, and a catalyst for discourse on art and queerness. With a collection of over 30,000 objects and a research library of over 3,000 volumes, the Museum fosters experimentation and research through exhibitions, programs, educational platforms, and publications.
Accessibility
Located at 26 Wooster Street, the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art strives to provide a welcoming environment to all visitors. Five external steps lead to our entrance doors: a wheelchair lift is available. All galleries are wheelchair-accessible, and a single-occupancy accessible restroom is located behind the visitor services desk: all restrooms are gender-neutral. Large print didactics are available. For questions or access requests, please email [email protected] with 1 week advance of your visit.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art, 26 Wooster Street, New York, United States
USD 0.00
