On the Road to Legendary
Art21 Magazine, 2014
An Amazon search for photography books returns well over 100,000 titles. Narrow that search to explicitly gay or queer portraiture and the return is infinitesimal by comparison. The photographer Gerard H. Gaskin knew when he secured his first book deal that it was a feat not just for him but also for the queer community he’s photographed for nearly twenty years. Gaskin has been called the official photographer of the house ballroom scene that was “born out of a need for black and Latino gays to have a safe space to express themselves,” he writes. “My images try to show a personal and intimate beauty, pride, dignity, courage, and grace that has been painfully challenged by mainstream society.”
Thumbnail: Gerard H. Gaskin, Baby (painted black) at Tony, Andrea, and Eric Ball Brooklyn, NY, 2000. Courtesy the artist. Left: Gerard H. Gaskin, Sinia at Awards Ball NYC Brooklyn, NY, 2003. Courtesy the artist. Right: Gerard H. Gaskin, Gisele at Latex Ball Manhattan, NY, 2008. Courtesy the artist.