ART, SEX, & CELLULOID

Outfest Thinks That The World Needs A Lot More Vaginal Cream

“Change takes time, it takes investment and it always starts deep within our culture and finds its first expression among the rebels, the misfits… y’know, the artists. The ones who defy convention and imagine that another reality is possible. That means change starts right here with us. Our origins took us from outcasts to Outfest. For nearly three decades Outfest has been the place to see our stories: the stories of our neighbors, our friends, our nation, and our world projected 30-feet high and larger than life. Outfest nurtures artists who push the envelope, who struggle against the mainstream to tell stories that change the culture and eventually the world.””This year we’re celebrating the 10th anniversary of the Platinum section of the festival. This is the section dedicated to films, video, performance, and new media that explore the next frontier… Platunum has heralded the work of so many pioneers, filmmakers, and art stars who have defined a generation: Barbara Hammer, Kenneth Anger, Bruce LaBruce, Vaginal Cream Davis, Ron Athey, Cathrine Opie, Tom Chomont, Naomi Bustamonte, Penny Arcade to name just a few.”

– Kirsten Schaffer, Outfest’s Director of Programming giving props to the groundbreaking work of queer artists at last night’s Opening Night Film Gun Hill Road.

She’d probably agree with Perez Hilton and Andrew Sullivan’s assertions that queers must make their own media to change the culture rather than on waiting for politicians to change the culture for us.

But would she agree with radical queers who argue that occasional destruction also helps change culture? After all, the work of the artists she named aren’t known for being polite—often they’re bloody, brash, provocative, and even deliberately offensive to help push cultural boundaries.

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