right under my nose

(circa 1960)
Reading, Pennsylvania. This is my current hometown, and you can say I am not so fond of it. I mean leaving the big city was a relief to a 13 yr old but after truly experiencing it does not compare. I do believe, though, that amidst all the issues the city has (drugs, violence) it is a hot bed of future leaders, artists, and innovators; if the tools are presented to them (like they did to me). This has been confirmed today when I found out one of my favorite artists was born here and raised in Berks County! This is none other than:

I find this man extraordinary for so many reasons. The selfish, stereotypical, narcissistic, and frankly gay part of me loves him for the lifestyle he lived in the '80s. He lived the quintessential New York scene, before the New York scene came to its modern day definition. On a much bigger level though he did what a lot of people take for granted sometimes. He used art to channel his feelings, he used it to materialize his thoughts. He also did this in a simple manner. Simplicity is all he used to deliver very powerful messages to the public. Powerful political, social, and personal messages. His art made loud statements on issues like apartheid, AIDS, and the crack outbreak in the US. His art also embodied the culture that has manifested in our community within the last couple of decades. It was also this commercial greed that ultimately contributed to his death. He died in 1990 of HIV, thanks to the long-term government ignorance of the issue.

All the above artwork was created after his diagnosis and a clear example of why I admire this man so much. He strives for something greater than what we all were.

I sadly can't find anyone high profile of doing a similar job or trying to raise such awareness. Maybe we're too buried in our own selfishness to realize the bigger issues, but it's about time we opened our eyes. This man did and by doing so he was part of a collective and influential group, one that raised much needed awareness and kick started a movement. My hats off to you Keith. Without visionaries like you, I don't know where our world would be.

I'm finally going to leave you guys with one of my favorite sights in NYC. I saw this every time I hopped onto my bus to go back home last semester and it never failed to brighten my day. It's a commemorative mural to the man himself, marking his would be 50th birthday.

xoxo