About Face

A unique survey of 350 artworks by a global and diverse array of LGBTQ+ artists - many underrecognized and overlooked - from the last 50 years

Though the Stonewall Riots might now be shorthand for the start of the gay rights movement, so much of art and culture has been 'queer' since the beginning of time. In About Face, art historian and curator Jonathan D. Katz explores this concept head-on, curating a tapestry of works that connect historical threads and reveal how gender and sexual identity have been interwoven by artists contemporaneous to and since Stonewall. With more than 350 artworks by over 40 LGBTQ+ artists across nationalities and generations, and original texts by artists and scholars, About Face is as stunning as it is important.

‘[Katz's] ambitious state-of-the-field survey succeeds in capturing the ever-evolving hybrid intersectionality of queer aesthetics. The exhibition and its accompanying book, About Face, add immensely to this process.’ – Gay and Lesbian Review

‘[N]ever underestimate the value of a volume like this — particularly by someone like Jonathan Katz, who has tirelessly worked on queerness — that brings together figures who are, for the most part, not exhibited or considered together. Pride comes in different forms; more of this, please.’ –Hyperallergic

‘Demonstrate[s] the transformative power of queer art.’ – Dazed

‘Bring[s] a deeper understanding of the canon.’ – The Art Newspaper

‘The present moment sets the stage perfectly for About Face, ensuring its relevance and urgency for readers.’ – STIR

‘[This book] brings together five decades of exuberance, defiance, solidarity, heartbreak and metamorphosis from artists who have reimagined how we think about gender and sexuality.’ – The New York Times

Jonathan David Katz, PhD, is Associate Professor of Practice in the History of Art and Gender, Sexuality, and Women s Studies at The University of Pennsylvania. In 2019, Katz curated About Face: Stonewall, Revolt and New Queer Art at Wrightwood 659 Gallery in Chicago. With texts by Julian Carter, Anthony Cianciolo, Amelia Jones, Ava L.H. Kim, Joshua Chambers-Letson, Christopher Reed, Jacolby Satterwhite, and Dagmawi Woubshet.

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