TV shows, famous talk show hosts, and openly queer artists have increased public acceptance of female intimacy over the last 30 years. But this newfound tolerance has also fueled sensationalism of female relationships, where the enduring proximity of any two female celebrities leads to speculation that a new, “internet-breaking” lesbian couple has formed. While lesbian representation has significantly increased since the 90s, the conditions of recognition continue to be dictated by the needs of straight audiences: the need for gossip, entertainment, and the possibility of something uniquely beyond the mainstream. "Shadows to Spotlights" thus has two missions: to highlight the modern fetishization of queer women and to celebrate self-defined visibility in the lesbian community over the last 30 years.
This collection is broken down into three key segments. “The Outcast” looks at lesbians’ relationship with various forms of media at the turn of the millennium. The decision to include gossip columns models how in the 90s, pop culture began to view queer people and culture as “the hot new thing”: an entity to be fetishized, but not sincerely appreciated. Relationships between non-celebrities, people who did not conform to white beauty standards, or people of lower socioeconomic status were given little mainstream visibility. This is best captured by the historical collections of the Lesbian Herstory Archives in Brooklyn, containing a plethora of photographs by and of lesbian couples.
“The Optimistic” celebrates increasing acceptance for the LGBTQ+ community in the early 2000s, marked most notably by the nationwide legalization of gay marriage. This period was characterized by stars coming out as queer and the ability of lesbians to slowly take up more space. Artists, writers, and athletes alike were able to “requeer the mainstream” by creating art that included LGBTQ+ experiences and using their platform to call for equal rights.
“The Obsession” focuses on the treatment of lesbians most recently. Initially inspired by the wild “Gaylor” theory, this period is marked by a combination of sapphic “shipping” and society essentially demanding celebrities to declare their sexuality to avoid coming across as queerphobic. In contrast to Henrich Olsen’s Some Faggy Gestures—a collection of traditionally masculine portraits that feature effeminate poses which may be considered gay today—, “The Obsession” features people’s favorite gay, online rumors. Queer speculations have recently shifted from that of queer people who desperately search for any sort of representation within their favorite media to people of all sexual orientations speculating about their idols, often leading to declarations of one’s sexual orientation that isn’t on their own terms. This period highlights that lesbians’ fight for equal representation locally and globally is not over, and now involves a new set of challenges.
Viewers are encouraged to navigate to the "Credit Where Credit's Due" tab to learn more about the creator and significance of each piece that has been selected for this collection, as well as the “Choice” tab to understand the significance of format in this project.
"The older lesbians experienced shame and sometimes violence in their relationships – many of them had secret relationships."
On the lived experience of the 1990s lesbian scene.
“There was a real hunger in the lesbian community to be photographed and to be able to see images of ourselves."
On documenting lesbian communities in San Francisco in the 1990s.
“It felt like a revolution was about to happen and we had to change our lives and be part of it. Women were coming out and marriages were being broken."
“At first glance, most of the songs seem to echo an obvious romantic angle, with lyrics like You could absolutely break my heart / That’s how I know that we’re in love, and I never thought you’d happen to me. It’s easy to assume a song is about romantic love — for one, most popular songs seem to be, but also, because we often exalt romantic love as a songwriter’s highest muse. Particularly in queer art, romantic love is not merely a classic choice, but a revolution and a rebellion. However, queer platonic love is something of an untread beauty in more popular queer artists’ work. To me this is what makes boygenius so evocative. Some of their catalog, of course, deals with romantic love, whether beautiful and kind and pedestaled, or rough and toxic and ultimately breaking. But it’s their songs rooted in their own friendships that lay the foundation for the rest of their work."
