Charles Leslie, 85 anos, tem sido um ícone da cena artística queer do Soho em meio século. Nasceu em Deadwood, Dakota do Sul, mas saiu na adolescência para Los Angeles e, mais tarde, para Veneza, Amsterdã e Paris. Suas viagens o levaram ao redor do mundo coletando arte e amantes até o início da década de 1960, quando se encontrou na cidade de Nova York e conheceu seu parceiro de longa data, Fritz Lohman.
Em 1969, os dois estavam em casa no Soho. A área era conhecida por seus lofts abandonados e artistas ousados que faziam com que o trabalho queer não fosse apresentado. Leslie tinha uma ideia: eles colocariam seu próprio show de arte, com artistas que estavam fazendo trabalhos homoeróticos. Eles achavam que conseguiriam 60 ou 70 participantes para a abertura, mas estava congestionado com mais de 300 pessoas. Leslie e Lohman realizaram esta exposição de arte subterrânea por dois anos antes de abrir uma galeria adequada; eles a transformaram posteriormente em uma fundação de arte sem fins lucrativos e, eventualmente, um museu de boa-fé, com coleções de mais de 20.000 peças. Hoje, o Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Artestá entre as coleções de arte LGBTQ+ mais renomadas do mundo.
Lohman faleceu em 2009, mas Leslie continuou expandindo a coleção e ampliando seu legado. Atualmente, ele está trabalhando na preparação para o Art After Stonewall , uma grande retrospectiva dedicada ao 50.o aniversário de Stonewall; ela vai de 24 de abril a 21 de julho. Sentamos com ele para discutir arte queer, Stonewall e sua ideia de um dia perfeito em NYC.
Charles Leslie. Photo: Thomas Stoelker
How have LGBTQ+ people changed the art landscape?
Charles Leslie:
They’ve always been a significant part of the whole world of art. In the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s, straight artists would talk pejoratively about the “Queer Art Mafia.” But there were a lot of queer artists who made an impact. There were always gay people who were part of the scene.
What role did Soho play in this queer art scene?
CL:
It couldn’t have happened anywhere else. Soho was the last undeveloped frontier of the arts…one of the last areas with amazing space—unused and underused. The old Jewish and Italian owners were desperate to get their places rented or sold. We had to keep our art a secret at first.
Right now, the Guggenheim is celebrating Mapplethorpe and The Met has an upcoming exhibit on camp. Do you see a greater acceptance of LGBTQ+ art than before?
CL:
A lot of major artists have broken through. People like Keith Haring have become major international figures.
Who are some of the most important gay artists at the moment?
CL:
I love Delmas Howe. He is possibly my favorite male artist right now.
Why is it important for LGBTQ+ people to see themselves in art?
CL:
It’s an affirmation. Before we only saw men and women together. Until this queer revolution, the only breakthrough came from neoclassical and Renaissance art when painters took advantage of allegorical stories. It was a way to break the rules. When you look at Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, it’s very clear to me that these men were gay.
Tell us what Stonewall means to you.
CL:
Long before Stonewall, there was this surging underground impetus toward some kind of change. It was a horrible time before Stonewall. Legally, you couldn’t serve a gay person a drink in a tavern. And then, it happened—people got sick of it. And people got sick of the Mafia running the gay bars. Every time we bought a drink, we put money in the Mafia’s pocket. It was the cumulative effect of people saying “Enough!”
Were you in the City when Stonewall happened?
CL:
The night the riots started, Fritz and I were at home in Soho. We got a call from someone at 2am who said to come down to Sheridan Square. By the time we got there, there were mobs of people. But it didn’t happen in just one night—it lasted three nights. Finally, the city council woke up and said enough is enough.
Can you give us Charles Leslie’s perfect NYC day?
CL:
I’m 85 years old now, so my perfect day has changed. My perfect day now is not accepting any appointments before noon. Then I love to go to a little restaurant called
for lunch. I admire them because they hang a gay flag. And the food is marvelous.