Never Look Away | |
---|---|
Year | 2021 |
Subject |
|
Dimensions | 37 m(120 ft) |
Location | Portland, Oregon, United States |
45°31′27″N122°40′40″W / 45.5241°N 122.6778°W |
Never Look Away is a mural in Portland, Oregon.
Never Look Away is a mural of eight LGBT activists, installed at the intersection of Northwest Broadway and Couch Street near the North Park Blocks in northwest Portland's Pearl District. Depicted Oregonians include Rupert Kinnard, an openly gay African-American cartoonist who created the first African-American LGBT comic strip characters; David Martinez, a founding board member of the Q Center and a co-founder of Portland Latino Gay Pride (now called PDX Latinx Pride); and activist and musician Kathleen Saadat. Other national figures include gay liberation activist Marsha P. Johnson and transgender rights advocate Angelica Ross. [1]
According to Claudia Meza of Oregon Public Broadcasting, the mural is the "first public art project in the state dedicated to LGBTQ+ community achievements and progress". [1] KOIN's Emily Burris said the mural is the city's first "dedicated to queer heroes". She wrote, "The mural is made up of colorful abstracts representing the struggle, growth and progress in a city known for its progressive policy, while acknowledging the work still to be done." [2] The mural is approximately three stories tall and 120 feet (37 m) wide, according to lead artist and producer Cassandra Swan. [1]
Zoe Piliafas met Oregon LGBT rights activist Kathleen Saadat at a bar six years before the mural's installation. Piliafas has recalled:
I said, I know who you are. I'm going to be putting a mural up that's going to have you on it along with some other significant community members from the LGBTQ community. And [Saadat] said, "That sounds great. I'd like to see you do that. I'll wait." [1]
Several people and groups helped the project come to fruition since 2019. [3] In addition to Swan, Ruban Lawrence helped produce the painting. The organization Pride Northwest sponsored the artwork and offered recommendations for subjects to depict. The city funded maintenance and graffiti removal services and the Portland Street Art Alliance offered artist recommendations and production assistance. Additionally, Really Big Video's owners PJ and Maria Harvey provided use of a high-powered projector. Participating artists include Tommy Mack-Davis (known as Nafsi) and Kyra Watkins. The mural was painted in 2021. [1]
LGBT culture is a culture shared by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer individuals. It is sometimes referred to as queer culture, while the term gay culture may be used to mean either "LGBT culture" or homosexual culture specifically.
Brenda Howard was an American bisexual rights activist and sex-positive feminist. The Brenda Howard Memorial Award is named for her.
The rainbow flag or pride flag is a symbol of LGBT pride and LGBT social movements. The colors reflect the diversity of the LGBT community and the spectrum of human sexuality and gender. Using a rainbow flag as a symbol of LGBT pride began in San Francisco, California, but eventually became common at LGBT rights events worldwide.
Pride Northwest, Inc. is a community-based regional LGBTQ+ Pride 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Portland, Oregon, United States. The non-profit organization was founded in 1994 and the current executive director of the organization is Debra Porta, who has served as the president of Pride Northwest since 2006.
CC Slaughters is a gay bar and nightclub located in Portland, Oregon, and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The Portland bar is located in the Old Town Chinatown neighborhood, and the Puerto Vallarta bar is located in Zona Romántica.
LGBT culture in Eugene, Oregon predates the Stonewall riots in New York in 1969, but that event coincided with organized efforts in Lane County, Oregon, to support and celebrate LGBT people. Even though Eugene has been rated on lists of cities friendly to LGBT populations, there are very few venues specifically for the LGBT community in the Eugene/Springfield metropolitan area.
LGBT culture in Portland, Oregon is an important part of Pacific Northwest culture.
New York City has been described as the gay capital of the world and the central node of the LGBTQ+ sociopolitical ecosystem, and is home to one of the world's largest LGBTQ populations and the most prominent. Brian Silverman, the author of Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day, wrote the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most powerful LGBT communities", and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs, high-rise buildings, and Broadway theatre". LGBT travel guide Queer in the World states, "The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth, and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". LGBT advocate and entertainer Madonna stated metaphorically, "Anyways, not only is New York City the best place in the world because of the queer people here. Let me tell you something, if you can make it here, then you must be queer."
Gloria Casarez was an American civil rights leader and LGBT activist in Philadelphia. Casarez served as Philadelphia's first director of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) affairs. During her tenure as director, Philadelphia ranked as the number one city nationwide for LGBT equality. Casarez served as the executive director of Gay and Lesbian Latino AIDS Education Initiative (GALAEI) from 1999 to 2008.
Stag PDX, or simply Stag, is a gay-owned nightclub and strip club in Portland, Oregon's Pearl District, in the United States. The club opened in May 2015 as the second all-nude gay strip club on the West Coast.
Rupert Kinnard also credited as Prof. I.B. Gittendowne, is an American cartoonist who created the first ongoing gay/lesbian-identified African-American comic-strip characters: the Brown Bomber and Diva Touché Flambé. Kinnard is gay and African American.
The Gay and Lesbian Archives of the Pacific Northwest (GLAPN) is an Oregon-based nonprofit dedicated to uncovering the history of sexual minorities in the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 1994, GLAPN works to collect, document, preserve and share historical data, artifacts and materials as and when they become available.
Eugene Pride Festival is an annual event held in August at Alton Baker Park and Promotes Respect In Diverse Expression (P.R.I.D.E.) for the LGBTQ community.
Belinda Carroll is an American standup comedian, writer, activist, actress, and singer. She is the founder of the Portland Queer Comedy Festival, organizer of the Portland Dyke March, and is a co-organizer as well as date auction host and fundraiser emcee of the Butch Voices Portland Regional Conference.
Sarah Hegazi, also spelled Hegazy or Higazy, was an Egyptian socialist, writer, and lesbian activist. She was arrested, imprisoned and tortured in Egypt for three months after flying a rainbow flag at a Mashrou' Leila concert in 2017 in Cairo. Hegazi, who lived with PTSD resulting from the prison torture she had experienced in Egypt, was granted asylum in Canada, living there until her suicide.
The Roxy was a diner serving American cuisine in Portland, Oregon. Located on downtown Portland's Southwest Harvey Milk Street, the restaurant was established in 1994. The Roxy was popular as a late-night food destination and had a diverse clientele. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the diner operated 24 hours a day, except on Mondays. The Roxy has been described as "iconic" and a "landmark", and was known for being an LGBT-friendly establishment because of its employees' community involvement and its location within the historic hub of LGBT culture and nightlife. Following a forced six-month closure due to the pandemic, the diner opened under new public health and safety guidelines in November 2020. The diner closed in March 2022.
Local Lounge was a gay bar in Portland, Oregon, operating from 2010 to 2021.
Kevin Cook, known by the stage name Poison Waters, is an American drag performer. Since the 1980s, she has been an emcee, entertainer, and community activist. She is a longtime hostess at Darcelle XV Showplace and has participated in fundraisers, LGBT events, public service announcements, and other community activities throughout the Pacific Northwest. Cook has also taught at Portland Community College.
Santé Bar is an LGBT-friendly bar in Portland, Oregon.
Flawless Shade is the stage name of Tajh Jordan, an American drag queen and make-up artist based in Portland, Oregon. A former Miss Gay Oregon, Flawless Shade has been featured in campaigns by Adidas, GLAAD, and Top Level Design. Jordan competed under their real name on the subscription-based streaming service WOW Presents Plus's competition series Painted with Raven.