GAYLETTER

OK, I’m aware that this is about the whitest event we could possible promote (white girls smiling - pictured), but this letter was created to highlight the things we are interested in, and along with pretty much every other fucking person in New York, I was obsessed with the Serial podcast. If this highly addictive podcast, about the murder of a young woman in 1998, also left you with as many lingering questions as it did me then this Friday is your opportunity to ask the podcast’s creators, Sarah Koenig and Julie Snyder, all of them. But get in line, cos there’s no one I know who listened to Serial in its entirety who doesn’t have a couple 100 questions about the case they desperately need to be answered! I checked and their are tickets left, but I could only see about 30 — so grab them before they go. This is sure to be a fascinating evening...with hopefully a satisfying ending that none of us saw coming!  —tom

When Elegance Bratton visited us this weekend at our booth at the NY Art Book Fair at MoMA PS1 and told us he was speaking on a Vogue panel, my first thought was that’s cool, Anna Wintour is getting behind underground artists and filmmakers. However it’s not a “Vogue magazine” panel but a “Vogue ball” panel. Which honestly is more our style. “The discussion features artists Luna Luis Ortiz, Milton Ninja Garcia, Kia LaBeija and Elegance Bratton, moderated by Martez Smith, discussing the development of their creative practice as well as the ball scene as a context for a range of activist pursuits with regards to HIV/AIDS.” As you probably know we throw a Pride Ball each year, so are intimately aware of how vibrant, talented and brilliant the current houses are. The ball scene was created in NYC but it’s influence can be found in art, music and culture the world over. One example that comes to mind is FKA Twigs, who unlike Madonna — who coopted the scene for her own fame and financial gain without giving proper credit — has gone to great lengths to celebrate the performers who keep the community alive. I’m sure this and many other topics will come up. Elegance isn’t afraid to speak his mind and we love him for it!  —tom

Mark Dommu told us about his new party called Hair that he started last week and I was like oh cute, love that name. Mark told me that for this week’s edition he’s teaming up with Shane Shane (who’s super fun.) “Shane is one of my favorite queerdos and Fancy has always been one of my favorite performance nights, so this is such an exciting match for me...the crowd was a great mix of cute boys, queers, trans kids, and queens. The shows were fun — Bridget Barkan absolutely SLAYED singing “Aquarius” from Hair and is now going to sing a different song from the show at every party. The vibe is very laid back and inclusive and Macri is definitely the new gay space Williamsburg has been waiting for.” I have to say you gotta love these party kids, they can come up with anything to sell a party. I learn something new every day. Anyways, we always say at GAYLETTER that if it’s a new party — give it a try, you have nothing to lose and you could even look brand new if the crowd doesn’t know you, as opposed to “there’s that tired queen wasted again...” You know what I mean ;).  —Abi

The brilliant photographer and documentarian, Yann Arthus-Bertrand has created a new film that tells the story of all of us. Well maybe not all of us, but pretty damn close. The film has 3 parts, each 90-minutes long, featuring incredible interviews with hundreds of humans from around the world. Each person speaks directly to camera in front of a black background (so you focus on the person, not their surroundings). This egalitarian technique works, you have less to grab onto, less to make judgements about, their essential humanness comes through faster and you are forced to listen to their words and explore their faces. There’s factory workers in China, people from slums in Rio, celebrities from America (Cameron Diaz — one of the least interesting people) the ex-president of Uruguay (one of the most fascinating). Human premiered on Saturday (Sept. 12) at the refurbished United Nations General Assembly Hall in New York City. It’s now available on YouTube. You can watch the individual interviews (all 2000 of them) but I recommend you watch the 3 parts in full. As a complete package it is an impactful document of the ruling inhabitants of this planet. One race ya’ll, the HUMAN race.  —tom

Last week I went to the opening of Peter Berlin’s latest exhibition at ClampArt ‘Wanted’ with my friend Chris, and we were impressed. It’s “an exhibition of self portraits from the 1970s and early 1980s.” Peter Berlin is based in San Francisco, was raised in Germany and born in Poland in 1942 as Baron Armin Hagen von Hoyningen-Huene, (that’s a long name). He established himself as an international sensation after creating some of the most identifiable male erotica of the time. It’s important to mention that this exhibition contains lots of images of Peter’s erected penis, ha! (just in case you were expecting something more vanilla.) It’s co-curated by Eric Smith and Mark Garrett. “In 2005 Jim Tushinski directed and co-produced That Man: Peter Berlin, which helped spawn a resurgence of interest in and appreciation for Berlin’s work. ‘WANTED: Peter Berlin,’ the exhibition at ClampArt, is mounted with the motivation to further support that comeback.” I saw Peter at the exhibition, but too many people were trying to talk to him, so I didn’t bother. Instead, I went to the back of the gallery and bought his T-shirt. I’d recommend you check out the show, it was my first time seeing his work in person and I left with a better appreciation for it.  —Abi

When I saw the email for this event I realized that I’ve had an inordinate amount of experience with nude drawing in my life. I did a whole semester of it in college, I have posed as a semi-nude model, on not one, but two occasions, and I’ve drawn nude models on at least three other occasions. This is unusual only because I am a terrible drawer. I mean really bad. In college I would wince when the model walked around to look at our sketches. I would make it clear to her (it was always a her, our teacher was a straight perv) that she was much prettier than the grotesque sketch on my page. This Friday is your chance to practice your drawing skills with a partner! For the sake of your relationship, I hope you can create more flattering images than I was able to. “This two-hour class will begin with a basic lesson on figure drawing, then couples may split into pairs and use their newfound skills to draw each other in different poses. Our instructor will be on-hand and available to offer tips individually and to the group.” They supply everything from paper to pencils to the booze needed to loosen you up. Get nude and get drawing. This event is sooo going to turn into an orgy by the second hour. lol.  —tom

We are so excited for the New York Art Book Fair. It starts this Thursday, September 17, with a preview night (6:00-9:00PM), then is open for the rest of the weekend (Friday 1-7pm, Saturday 11am-9pm and Sunday 11am-7pm) at MoMA PS1. We are so excited to see Klaus walking around the fair — he has white hair, you can’t miss him. The NYABF is the biggest, baddest art book fair in the world (40,000+ publications), it’s also the first chance you’ll have to grab a copy of GAYLETTER issue 3 with Susan Sarandon on the cover. Come visit us at our booth (N11) where you can also pick up copies of our past issues along with all sorts of GAYLETTER supplies. The issue is packed with amazing stories, and features original artwork and photography from Tanner Cohen, Vincent Dilio, Dan Donigan, Thomas Dozol, Hadar, Ren Hang, Chris Mears, Will McBride, Bruce LaBruce, Slava Mogutin, Daniel Moss, Zanele Muholi, Robert W. Richards, Mike Rinaldi, Eli Schmidt, Patrick Sweeney, Eric Torres, Jan Wandrag and many more. You are gonna love it so so so much. Promise ;)  —Abi

Joey LaBeija is one of our favorite DJ/producers. He played at our Pride Ball at the Wythe Hotel in Brooklyn in June and killed it. If you want a refresher on his skills google the live set he did on Sway’s radio show (Sway in The Morning) on Siriusxm. We played it on our last road trip and it made the time fly by. On Wednesday Joey is releasing his debut album, the deeply personal, Shattered Dreams. Here’s what he told The Fader about the album: “Shattered Dreams is a story inspired by the last year of my life, which was this erratic and melancholic journey of confronting insecurities, letting go of the past and discovering my self-worth. This project serves as the soundtrack/background music to the conflicts and self inflicted nightmares that took place in my head through my daily struggle, as opposed to what was actually happening.” I’ve been listening to the album and absolutely love it! On Wednesday Joey will play a DJ set (his last performance before he moves, temporarily, to Kansas City.) Le1f is also djing and Abby b2b Geng and $hayne HBA will be hosting. Congratulate Joey on the new album and wish him safe travels on his adventure to Missouri. Come back soon BB, New York needs you!  —tom