Artist serge gay jr. in front of one of his many murals. Credit: James Chiang

How A San Francisco Artist Shares Queer Experiences in the City

作者: gay cities

Meet Serge Gay, Jr., an artist whose work can be seen all over San Francisco, and learn about his favorite things in the city.

It was love at first sight, but with a twist.

At the age of 22, serge gay jr. arrived in San Francisco to attend an art conference. Raised in New York and Miami, he had never been to the West Coast. 和许多游客一样，他刚下飞机就认定这座城市就是他的家. The mild weather, the views, the art community, the food, 进步的性观念使他相信，这是他度过余生的地方.

In the ensuing decade, Gay Jr. 使自己成为纽约市最重要的非裔美国画家和壁画家之一. This year, he found the man he loves in the city he loves. 他在市政厅与他的伴侣迈克尔结婚，进一步巩固了贝博体彩app作为家的地位.

GayCities asked Serge for a tour of the City by the Bay, with stops at a few of his favorite spots, several showcasing his own murals. Starting at Art Attack gallery in the 卡斯特罗, we weaved our way through an amazing array of attractions, 从卡斯楚的双峰酒廊到摩洛哥餐厅 mission, to a Polk Street alley mural, 在豪华的酒廊和餐厅享受老式咖啡，结束一天的工作 north海岸.

What follows is Serge's narrative of the day, told in the first person, with commentary on the city, his art, and his life.

Down the Rabbit Hole

"Walking on Market Street in the 卡斯特罗有一天，我注意到这个美丽的空间艺术攻击，所以我发送了我的作品样本. This is my ‘hood, and there's a lot more local buzz around here. when i show near union的, it's more about visitors than locals. 那很好，但我要讲的故事更倾向于》这experience 在城市里，所以这个位置适合我作为一个人和艺术家住在附近."

“我试图展示那些在艺术中没有被充分代表的人和事业. 作为一名黑人同性恋艺术家，我在传达黑人同性恋经历的美好. I want to cast light on outcasts, whether it's women who are denigrated or immigrants cast aside; things close to me and my life, things that tend to be untold. 这些都是我所珍视的主题，而不仅仅是一张漂亮的照片."

"When I moved to San Francisco, 我在其他被抛弃和不合群的人中间找到了自己的家，他们走到一起，开辟了一个做自己的空间. I had hints of my identity, but I didn't really know who I was. 我记得我当时在想，“这是我终于可以自由地做自己的地方，我属于这里。.“这是一座基于一个理念的城市:如果每个人都能做自己，那会是什么样子??"

" at the time, I was in art school in Detroit, 我差点在洛杉矶或纽约找份工作. 我飞到这里参加一个艺术会议，除了读到的东西，我对这个地方一无所知. I fell in love with it at first sight. Miami will always be a big part of my influence, 我在一个海地家庭长大，身边有很多来自加勒比海的人. But somehow, it never felt as groundbreaking as San Francisco. 在这里，我们不仅混合了种族身份，还混合了性别和性取向，形成了一个真正丰富的组合. 这是一个包容的社区，在这里我可以学会爱自己，并和那些能帮助我找到真实声音的人交朋友."

“直到2007年我遇到迈克尔，我才完全弄清楚自己的性取向. I knew I was different, 但我觉得在我第一次爱上一个人之前，我不能确定, and I had no idea who I'd fall in love with. Michael was everything I wanted in a person. 在我遇到他之前，我妈妈问过我是不是同性恋——她有点怀疑我是——我只是回答了, “mom, I don't even know.然后我打电话告诉她我要带迈克尔回家，她说:“哦，好吧。.” She was waiting for me to be okay with myself. And I was waiting to figure it out."

When I moved to San Francisco, 我在其他被抛弃和不合群的人中间找到了自己的家，他们走到一起，开辟了一个做自己的空间.

Twin Peaks Lounge

"Making a living as an artist is a constant struggle. There are so many ups and downs. I've had to juggle multiple projects, from graphic design to gallery shows to murals, events, even film and music video, to actually get by. it ' s a lot, 但这些是我必须做的事情来支付账单，这样我就可以把时间花在我最喜欢的事情上:绘画."

"Down the Rabbit Hole 真的不想成为一个有恋物癖清单的男人的玩具吗, but to be seen as a person who has needs and likes himself. 所以我想到了在双峰酒吧喝酒时画自己的想法, while patrons look and sort of objectify me, as I sit by myself. 作为一个群体，我们还很年轻，还在不断发展，还在寻找我们在世界上的道路. 我们在发展我们的道德标准的过程中，有时我们仍然伤害或伤害对方. 这幅画是在说，这是我们仍在研究的东西，但我们还没有完全做到."

"Twin Peaks Lounge is monumental to me. It's got so much history, 作为城市中第一家拥有面向街道的窗户的同性恋酒吧. You can sit in a lounge setting, 喝点酒，放松一下，不用像其他酒吧那样拥挤不堪. 外面冷的时候我就在这里喝杯热棕榈酒，晚上出去的时候我就在这里加油. 我喜欢它闻起来像隔壁热饼干面包店的饼干."

作为一个群体，我们还很年轻，还在不断发展，还在寻找我们在世界上的道路.

卡斯特罗剧院

"I first really noticed the beauty of the 卡斯特罗剧院 when milk was being filmed there, when I was just moving to the city. I quickly discovered the Frameline Film Festival. 我开始做志愿者，这样我就可以进入剧院，在装饰艺术天堂中欣赏一部伟大的电影, for free."

街对面的马塞洛披萨(Marcello’s Pizza)是看电影前或逛卡斯特罗酒吧时加油的好地方. There are not so many places left that sell pizza by the slice, 那里的工作人员非常友好，披萨的质量也一直很好. You always run into people from around the ‘hood. 当你在城市里跑来跑去的时候，很容易低估得到一些美味的燃料的重要性."

please note: 卡斯特罗剧院将在2024年进行重大翻新，活动节目可能会受到限制.

The Moroccan Princess

"My friend Waleed and his partner created khamsa, a fantastic Moroccan restaurant on South Van Ness Avenue. 他让我为新空间画一幅壁画，我无法拒绝. 我和我丈夫在市政厅结婚后的新婚之夜，他们很好地让我和我丈夫接管了它, not far away."

"This place is just another example of how amazing the city is. the owners, my friends, 把我带进了东非和中东的地下同性恋派对. It just blows my mind that these guys find a way to connect with each other here in a way they could not almost anywhere else in the world; this whole flourishing community of people who were not accepted back home but feel loved in San Francisco. And here they were inviting me to share their food, their community, and to create something that underscored that sharing in a mural. How could I say no?"

juanita More Mural

"When I moved here in 2008, I started going to Booty Call at QBar, which was the coolest party at the time. I didn't have any friends, but this is where I met Brandon, one of juanita's boys who ran her photo booth in the back. I was just fascinated with juanita and all the characters that Booty Call drew in every week. 所以我给胡安妮塔看了我画的一幅画，画的是我在她的派对上遇到的一些人，她让我画《贝博体彩》的t恤, which was then mass produced. Years later, she wanted to do murals for pride 2017. 我接到了一项任务，是为田德隆区的一条小巷里的Lush Lounge设计外墙. She wanted to bring gay art back into the Tenderloin, where she lives and feels strongly about preserving the gay history of Polk Street."

gay cities

gay cities is your gay travel guide to gay bars, restaurants, hotels and events with reviews, maps and photos in cities wherever you travel. check us out at gaycities.com.