Colorlines.com has an interesting piece on the work of Houston historian and playwright Trent Kelly, who is amassing a collection of rare vintage photographs of black male couples from the past 150 years in his online archive, Hidden in the Open: A Photographic Essay of Afro American Male Couples.
As both Kelly and writer Jorge Rivas admit, it’s impossible to know if all the men in Kelly’s 146-photos-and-c
ounting collection are actually gay, But many of those depicted would read as “queer” to an LGBT viewer (feel free to deconstruct that in the comments) and a number of photos have telling inscriptions.
Think of Kelly’s work not as clinical anthropology but the blending of art and history to reclaim a hidden legacy.
On his Flickr page, Kelly writes:
How about we take this to the next level?
Our newsletter is like a refreshing cocktail (or mocktail) of LGBTQ+ entertainment and pop culture, served up with a side of eye-candy.
Some of these images are sure to be gay and others may not. The end result is speculative at best for want in applying a label. Not every gesture articulated between men was an indication of male to male intimacies. Assuredly, what all photographs in this book have in common are signs of Afro American male affection and love that were recorded for posterity without fear and shame.
Kelly’s hope is that the images will break stereotypes and start conversations: “I want the world to see the photographs,” he told No More Down Low TV. “I want the black gay community to see the photographs and men in particular so they know they have a history to be proud of.”
Cam
Seeing old photos of possible couples from back then is fascinating and sad. The difficulties these couples had to go through were just unimaginable and I hope the ones shown here ended up happy.
Mike in Asheville
@Cam: +100
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Well done Queerty! What a beautiful story.
William
No words can really describe this.
Don’t worry Kelly, I am proud.
Aiden
Beautiful. And this friends, is why black history month is necessary. This post wouldn’t have happened otherwise.
Malky
I love vintage pics and it’s fascinating to see so many cool, dapper and confident looking black gay men throughout the decades.
Oh, ok.
I’m so honored to only exist in February.
Oh, ok.
@Isaac C: A single virgin with no life to speak of such as yourself is not the hand that feeds me. Thanks for caring though. <3
William
@Isaac C: Actually Black History month was founded by a Black Doctor.
Interesting
This photo essay has been around for several months, but I am glad to see it mentioned here.
Dirty Ole Man
And just when are Issac’s bullshit posts going to be removed?
Tackle
Beautiful pictures, and a nice story. Thanks for this positive piece Dan.
Caliban
I love vintage photos like these. Sure, with some of them you’re left wondering what the situations is, whether they’re brothers, buddies, or whatever, but some are less ambiguous, more obviously romantic couples.
Dirty Ole Man
The guys dancing to the ‘Bama State Collegians has got to be the most ballsy group. I don’t care how gay friendly they were in Harlem. The Stonewall police had to be lurking somewhere down on Christopher St looking for action.
Interesting
@Dirty Ole Man: In fact, the cops still target POC LGBT
http://www.fiercenyc.org/media/docs/4173_FIERCE_EndQualityofLife_PressRelease.pdf
Brad
While some of the couple might be gay, how many are just straight friends or siblings, especially for the oldest photos that appear to be from the late 19th or early 20th Centuries. Using an early 21st Century cultural lens on these pictures en masse lacks common sense.
Interesting
Brad,
I am sure there is more to this (as in they researched the topic) than they picked up some random photos. Why does everyone assume that everyone else is an idiot? Admittedly online, and in general, that’s not a bad assumption, but not every time. This is a highly specialized type of project. Do you think they didn’t think about the cultural differences?