AND INTO THE STREETS

location Louis Kahn Park
Neighborhood
Center City
completion date
October 31, 2023

AND INTO THE STREETS is a public art project by artist Rami George running from June through August that represents archival images and materials from the now defunct LGBTQ news publication, Au Courant (1982–2000). George threads together photographs of underrepresented histories and voices that depict a queer cultural memory of Philadelphia life, many of which were never published. Displays of public and private intimacies, political protests, and joyful celebrations are arranged nonlinearly, opening potential for new resonances to emerge as the images leave the solitude of the archives and gain new life in the streets. The result is a complex portrait that foregrounds not just LGBTQ life, but more importantly its intersections with many other hopes and struggles for a world built on care and solidarity.

The project builds upon significant time George has spent in the John J. Wilcox, Jr. Archives at the William Way LGBT Community Center, Philadelphia’s most extensive collection of historical LGBTQ materials and ephemera. It is also sited in Louis Kahn Park, the only public space in Philadelphia’s Gayborhood that has historically been a gathering place for the community. AND INTO THE STREETS opens during Pride month as a call to foreground politics in celebrating this year. Many of the political issues that emerge in this installation remain hurdles today, such as affordable housing, disability rights, and the health and well-being of trans and gender nonconforming people. Recurring individuals make appearances as well, some of whom have passed and others who remain stalwart activists and anchors in this community. There is a will for the images to speak on how the past is always with us, either in memory or in place, and how the livelihood of LGBTQ communities in particular rely on strong bonds forged across lines of difference and across generations. Grounded in time yet still able to speak, the lingering traces in these images breathe new life into the present, coalescing a joy and politics that calls us into the streets and into a world we are still becoming.

Public Programs

Opening Reception: June 12th, 6–8pm
On Monday, June 12, 6–8 pm, Mural Arts hosted the opening reception for AND INTO THE STREETS, which included DJ sets by Lindo, DJ Cookie, DJ Kit, and DJ Andi, an intergenerational roster of local LGBTQ Latinx music producers. Ephemera by KYKY Archives and FORTUNE were available for sale.

Rami George in Conversation with TK Smith and Jameson Paige: August 9th, 6–7pm
Rami George, the artist behind AND INTO THE STREETS, was joined in conversation with TK Smith, Assistant Curator: Art of the African Diaspora from the Barnes Foundation and Curator of Public Practice at Mural Arts, Jameson Paige. Together they discussed how the project came to be, its curatorial framework, and themes in the exhibition related to queer kinship, memory, image-making, and archives.

Drag in the Streets!: August 26th, 2–5pm
In conjunction with Rami George’s project AND INTO THE STREETS, Mural Arts Philadelphia presented “Drag in the Streets!” This joyful program was curated by the Moon Baby, a celebrated local performer. This party in the park highlighted a diverse line-up of Philly drag talent including Icon Ebony Fierce, Savvy Baby, and Xiomara Villa. It will also include music from intergenerational queer DJs Lindo, DJ Cookie, DJ Andi, and DJ Kit. During a moment when the LGBTQ community and drag performers are being targeted, this event celebrated and honored these important members of our community. Out of the nightclub and into the streets! Guatemalan food was provided by El Merkury.

A Community Revisited: October 21st, 2–4pm
As a tender closing event to AND INTO THE STREETS, Mural Arts Philadelphia invites people who are represented in the installation’s photos, writers who contributed to Au Courant, and people who were contributing to LGBTQ culture in Philadelphia between 1980-2000. Hosted by local activists and community leaders, we encourage people to bring friends and loved ones to reconnect with your communities, reflect on the past, and catch each other up on your present. This is a community gathering that will have space for facilitated dialogue as well as informal conversations.

Direct any event inquiries to Jameson Paige, Curator of Public Practice, jameson.paige@muralarts.org