Jesus after work
Jessica, age 12, stands in her solitary cell at the juvenile detention center. Independence Day is a reminder that the revolution has yet to happen.
Eve stands outside the apartment after a fight with Mark, her boyfriend, before he leaves in his truck with his dog, Zeus (left), 2012. “I’m 43 and all I’ve ever wanted was a man to love me in a safe way.” Moments after Mark got into his car, he drove rapidly towards Eve, missing her by an inch and intending to evoke fear that he would run her over • The other day was PTSD Awareness Day. Thank you to all the veterans of private wars who are still here, even when they haven’t wanted to be.
Sean, age 26, and Junior, age 31, kiss on the dance floor at The Abbey. Sean and Junior met a few hours before. “I'm a filmmaker, so I’m working on a project now, a documentary. I have a friend who is an actor who invited me to Rick’s Restaurant...They have a new drink and everyone will be there, so I went to there with my friend. Just for an hour to then come back and work. Then I don’t know how [Sean] and we met each other and I don’t know we had some chemistry…anyways we spent some time at the Rick’s Restaurant and then we decided to both go be with friends. We were both with friends so it was hard to keep up with everyone. He had something with his friend. So I told him I am going to be at The Abbey later if you want to come over that would be great. But I wasn’t expecting him to come over. So I was at The Abbey and he text me oh I am at The Abbey too so we met again at The Abbey…so The Abbey was like oh I think he likes me I am going to meet him again right here…I’ve been to The Abbey a few times…The Abbey is kind of like the point of everybody even if you are going to go to another place if you’re a gay men you always end up at The Abbey. Even if you I meet someone somewhere to dance and kind of enjoy each other without your friends around, I actually go to The Abbey. I don’t know its an interesting place to be. I am from Brazil Originally and Sao Paolo has a very agitated and lots of huge houses for gay people and when I got in LA 5 years ago I really thought I had no idea about a place like this. When I went to The Abbey because it was famous, I thought it would be even bigger than it is…it has the feeling of the tourist place so everybody goes there but at the same time it is chill during the day you can have a drink and sit down. Have a conversation with your friends where you can be yourself. You feel kind of safe in The Abbey. I really like it there…I like the energy it is very easy going, I love the food. I just love the music. It is a great place to be. And forget everything else,” says Junior. “It is a place where we can be free,” Sean. Two weeks later, Sean and Junior are dating. 2. image of Julian. 3. Blanca and Patricia @time
I went to The Abbey for the first time when I was 20 or 21 with a girl. We had plans to go to West Hollywood on a Saturday night. Our first stop, like many, local, tourist, or queer, was The Abbey. We got there very early and only a few people were present, snacking and conversing. But contrary to a lot of bars in the early evening, this one did not feel empty. Whether you’re an LA resident who has been out since your teens or a 50 year old who takes a bus from Lancaster because no one knows you are part of the LGBTQ+ community, the historic, tongue in cheek nature of The Abbey inevitably pushes you to self-inquiry whether for a night or for a lifetime. It is one of the few places you will find lipstick on the Virgin Mary’s mouth. I haven’t been back to this place on the map since the evening a few years ago. To come back with my camera to engage with people was very special. I was in middle school when local news would cut to wide angle shots (always from the outside) of hundreds of people leaning on those metal proto-Medieval gates during Prop 8 coverage. When Andrew asked me about historic locations in SoCal, it was hard not to end up here, which was a stomping ground before WeHo flew Pride flags year long. Thank you to the people who shared their stories with me on the night I came to The Abbey. I appreciated hearing about where you’ve found community, friendship and, sometimes, love, broadly defined. I also took anecdotes of loneliness, struggle and discomfort amongst the crowd to heart. I heard you lesbian and bisexual womxn who want their designated bar on the block back. Community is not a one size fits all. Sometimes it is formed after that first hug or at the end of a long wait. This nuance of experiences is highlighted not only in Alexander’s writing, but also when I look at the diverse moments captured in the work of 14 photographers that TIME commissioned to document LGBTQ+ bars around the country. I am grateful to be a part of this truly beautiful article thanks to @katzandrew @theatraff, alongside @ashadamsphoto @michellegroskopf @septemberdawnbo @rebecca_kiger @aliciavera @paulmoakley (above image of Taylor and George).
“I didn’t necessarily grow up in an environment or an atmosphere where gay culture was accepted or celebrated...It was very much a conservative upbringing. I went to school in the South, which didn’t really help. With someone who is struggling with their sexuality to go somewhere where they are very close minded. I don’t want to blanket the whole South. But going somewhere where everyone is wearing Lily Pulitzer and Martha’s Vineyard, you feel like you need to fit into a norm. And even after college, I felt going into New York—I thought this is my moment for me to break out and accept myself for being gay…And I spent 5 years in New York and I was in a long-term relationship. And one that was beautiful and full of love, but at the same time it didn’t feel like an actual celebration of what true love for a gay man would feel like…when I decided I was moving out to LA...I met this really nice local LA guy who was like ‘come to The Chapel on Sunday. Everyone hangs out here. You can really get engrained in the atmosphere, in the culture. Come meet my friends and find your own place here,’ And I did. And I was super nervous coming from New York…. This is the juxtaposition of gay culture—I met the person who invited me [here] on Grindr…New York has its own gay community and that wasn’t exactly where I felt myself fitting into naturally. And when I came to The Abbey and The Chapel for the first time, weirdly, weirdly for me, I was welcomed with open arms and these people who had never met me before were like ‘come, come….’ It felt so calming and felt so welcoming. From there, it blossoms into my actual relationships... I would say that…it felt like a home and safe place for me...I could meet people who had similar interests to mine and grow from there outwards. Not make it a central place but make it a place that bled through the entire community...That one time of someone extending an olive branch and saying come be a part of this community and meet new people. I found actually a rhythm and groove in a city I had recently moved to...that takes sometimes years for people to cultivate,” Travis, at The Chapel/The Abbey. For a compilation about LGBTQ bars out today @time
Mary Jane, age 4, reflection in her bedroom window at her grandpa’s house. When Mary Jane was one years old, she was removed from her parents’ care due to allegations of meth related neglect. At the age of two, her maternal grandfather adopted Mary Jane and her sister, Lillian. She identifies as “grandpa’s girl.” Mary Jane just graduated pre-school last week. She will start kindergarten in the Fall. Mary Jane will miss her pre-school where, at the end of each day, she would hug every student good bye before getting on the bus. Upon waking up, Mary Jane says affirmations, such as “I can be what I will to be,” which is her favorite one to recite. She loves playing tag hide and seek with her sister as well as Paw Patrol and My Little Pony. When she is older, she wants to be a doctor.
Wayne & his daughter. #fathers
Mason in Alabama.
Me the other day editing and writing in my apartment, wearing French shoes that don’t fit anymore. A riddle.
Did you see a distinct billboard on Robertson in Culver City in February and March? With writer and investigative journalist Kathy Dobie, we had the privilege of shadowing Stephanie Montgomery, the woman behind this courageous and stomach churning public installation. Artist, illustrator and muralist, Stephanie conceived of this billboard after she was raped at a club where she worked as a dancer. When the club and LAPD, with the DA most recently deciding not to prosecute, failed to take action, Stephanie decided to seek her own manifestation of justice. For 6 days, we watched as Stephanie, with a group of allies and fellow artists, paint this 42 by 14 tableau in a downtown LA warehouse. On a sunny February morning, with a group of Stephanie’s friends, we watched the billboard go up, observing as each inch was revealed. “ ‘While I’m calling for justice. I don’t expect it to happen.’ She said. ‘I want this to be my justice’ It had to be, because it was all she ever got. And she got it herself,” writes Kathy Dobie. Please take time today to read Stephanie’s story in print or see it online @californiasunday website. (More photographs to follow). I hope you will share Stephanie’s story widely.
Did you see this billboard on Robertson in Culver City in February and March? With writer and investigative journalist Kathy Dobie, we had the privilege of shadowing Stephanie Montgomery, the woman behind this powerful and gut-wrenching public installation. Artist, illustrator and muralist, Stephanie conceived of this billboard after she was raped at a club where she worked as a dancer. When the club and LAPD, with the DA most recently deciding not to prosecute, failed to take action, Stephanie decided to seek her own manifestation of justice. For 6 days, we watched as Stephanie, with a group of allies and fellow artists, paint this 42 by 14 ft tableau in a downtown LA warehouse. On a sunny February morning, with a group of Stephanie’s friends, we watched the billboard go up, observing as each inch was revealed. “ ‘While I’m calling for justice. I don’t expect it to happen.’ She said. ‘I want this to be my justice’ It had to be, because it was all she ever got. And she got it herself,” writes Kathy Dobie. Please take time today to read Stephanie’s story which was in print yesterday or see it online @californiasunday website. (More photographs to follow) 1. The billboard 2. Stephanie prepares to paint on a public wall in Venice Beach. 3. Stephanie with paint on her face at the warehouse. 4. Inside Skin strip club. 5. Stephanie paints the billboard. 6. Stephanie watches as Ari and Vyl assist with the billboard. 7. A friend embraces Stephanie in front of the billboard at the warehouse. 8. Stephanie embraces Dakota, her boyfriend, in her old apartment. 9. Stephanie, Ari and friends record the billboard as it is mounted. 10. Stephanie’s hand. Thank you @jackiecbates for this assignment.
“I’ve always just missed the bus. I see the backs of them pulling out, leaving.” - William
I took this photo in 2009 when I was 14 within the first few weeks of sitting with people in hospice/convalescence. I remember being very nervous, as I took this photo. At the time, asking this man to document his hands was daunting. In the midst of apprehension, I knew that this was the beginning of the greatest love story of my life, documentary photography. This still holds true. So much profound love, but also a journey to purge the seeds of self-hate laid into my soil by men since my first breath #herstory #archives
Last week, I had the privilege of spending time with students at Chicago Public Schools thanks to a group of wonderful students and teachers. Thank you to @pulitzercenter and Mark Schulte for coordinating these visits that are very meaningful to me. We had powerful discussions about gender-focused documentary, feelings and the revolutionary power of story. One student said he was thinking about dropping out of school, but after the presentation, he said it made him reconsider staying. #grateful (above are some of the questions I received that I jotted down in my notebook; there are many more)
One sailboat
Bianca in the hospital a few weeks ago. Bianca has a daughter who she hasn’t seen or talked to in 15 years. I’ve called her daughter a few times over the last 12 years, leaving messages and wanting to connect, but never receiving a response. The reasons behind their estrangement are a mystery to me. An unexamined shadow in my images of Bianca. A “why” that may never be answered. #mother
Happy Mother’s Day to mothers, everywhere