The final project was one that I really wanted to show not only my skills in a medium I have experience with, but also explore content and research methods that I am interested in.
When we went on the tour of the Bowery, the part that resonated with me the most was the old gay clubs and Basquiat’s studio.
When trying to choose one topic, I knew I could not do that. There were too many parts of the Bowery’s history that excited and inspired me.
The influences I chose to work with are very different but tied together very effectively.
Working with the first drag queens and cross-dressers from the gay clubs during the 1890s, zoot suits that originated in Harlem but informed the suits worn later by mob bosses and more, Cy Twombly’s scribbles and Basquiat’s figure poses, I first designed modern, gender-fuck menswear.
I then translated these into large fashion illustrations with hair and makeup inspired by the idea of femininity that was most popular at the time which was a sort of Marie Antoinette, hyper-feminine look.
The process was long and tedious as the materials I wanted to illustrate all folded and fell very differently so understanding how they would look in real life without having them there was difficult. The scale of the sketches was also something that was challenging as I am not used to working with large paintings, although that is something I have tried to do more of in this class with Bridge 2.
I drew these men from the perspective of a person looking in on this scene at the time, seeing it as almost sick, Freudian or for lack of a better word, ‘faggy’.
Basquiat’s poses were used as I found the intense energy and poses similar to the vogueing balls of the time which also originated on the Bowery. 
I am very proud of the final result as it looks professional, the ideas are very clearly communicated and all in all, the energy of the sketches is evident.
