Gay rodeo pictures
Gilford’s latest exhibition captures the desire and resilience of a community that provides a safe space from the white patriarchal norms of the mainstream rodeo
Luke Gilford spent his childhood in the rodeo. His father was a champion and judge in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, and they would travel all over southwest America for competitions. But as he got older, Gilford began to recognise the misogyny and racism that was rife in these spaces, and as a queer person, he never felt like he belonged.
In , he discovered the International Gay Rodeo Association (IGRA). It was “like uncovering a shining beacon of hope,” he says. Founded in , the organisation provides a space for all competitors – regardless of sexual and gender identity – to compete without discrimination.
On show until 28 August at New York’s SN37 Gallery, Gilford’s latest show National Anthem presents over five years of documentation of LGBTQ+ cowboy and cowgirl communities in North America. Warm and tender, the huge portraits hang proudly across two floors of the gallery, refusing the neglect and dis
Gordon, Closeup, Los Angeles,
Chute, Dogging, Phoenix,
Bareback, Bronco Riding, San Diego,
Jerry, Burbank,
Brian & Alberto, Hayward,
Victory Kiss, Oklahoma City,
Hollywood Style Cowboys, Daystar Valley,
Bullfighter with Children, Fort Worth,
David Rodeo Clown, San Diego,
Jim, Phoenix,
Los Angeles Cowboys, Sun Valley,
Eiteljorg Museum, Indianappolis,
The Gay Rodeo
Artist Statement
I have been interested in Western culture and cowboys from an early age. Growing up in residential area of Seattle, my first exposure to rodeo came from television and books. I attended my first gay rodeo at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center in
The sport, camaraderie, and atmosphere of this first rodeo experience transformed me. I was completely drawn to it and I had to be a part of it. I wanted to be a cowboy. For the next six months, my best friend Gordon and I traveled to every gay rodeo in the Western United States. Gordon, a graphic designer, started wearing Western clothes on a daily basis. I got my first pair of Wrangler
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Experience the grit, determination and community of the national gay rodeo circuit in classic black-and-white photographs in Gilcrease Museum’s new exhibition, Blake Little: Photographs from the Gay Rodeo, on view June 22 – November 25,
Since its founding in , Gilcrease has led the way for artwork showcasing the American West, including depictions of the iconic cowboy. Photographer Blake Little provides an expansive redefinition of what a cowboy can be in his images capturing scenes of camaraderie, identity and sport in one of America’s most time-honored traditions.
The 41 black and pale photographs taken by Blake Adj between and in Photographs from the Gay Rodeo document the gay rodeo circuit and the lives of many of its participants in those years. The collected body of work not only serves as a stunning example of black and pale portraiture and of rodeo photography, it also explores the diverse and complex natures of individual and community identity in the West.
“Blake Little’s photographs demonstrate that cowboy traditions in the United States include diverse ind