A.B.F.M. Magazine® 5th Annual Online Halloween Group Exhibition! October 01-October 31, 2024
Cole Birmingham (he/they) is a queer photographer, community activist, and physician based in New York City who has dedicated a large part of his work to increasing awareness of LGBTQ+ issues, culture, and history. Cole's ongoing project, "Moments from The Scene" aims to unite queer experiences through photographing shared spaces within the LGBTQ+ community by evoking feelings of familiarity, curiosity, and nostalgia.
Since starting Moments from The Scene almost two years ago, I have cataloged photographs from over one hundred LGBTQ+ bars, clubs, and gathering spaces. Historically, they have been the primary haven for queer people to find connection, friendship, love, and sex. I am interested in how these spaces are perceived and navigated now and in finding the similarities (and differences) they have relative to each other and relative to queer spaces in the past. Their variety also reflects the wide spectrum of identities under the LGBTQ+ umbrella, and my work aims to unify the identities encompassed under it while also uplifting the nuanced differences that make this community so special.
Photographer Cole Birmingham notes:
A word about "Devil in the Disco":
This piece, as part of a larger series entitled #R3DRECEIPTS, is focused on the duality of the dance floor and nightlife as a whole. The dance floor is a liminal space, a transitional area between space and time. But also between intimacy and anonymity. On the dance floor, people find the freedom to be themselves and to release inhibitions, giving themselves (and their bodies) to the beat of the music. This release brings with it vulnerability, too. Just as red lighting is often associated with sensuality and, conversely, aggression, Devil in the Disco pairs the allure of the dance floor with the terror of the shadowy unknown.
A large disco ball in the center is bathed in red light. Past a brick archway, two other disco balls in the right background are illuminated by blue light. From the left corner, a skeletal figure reaches from the shadows. Shot with an iPhone 15 Pro Max back triple camera 6.675mm lens, edited in Lightroom.
Cole Birmingham has exhibited two consecutive times at A.B.F.M. Magazine®'s Online Halloween Group Exhibition. Cole is our call for art-featured artists for Pride Month and is in our featured artist directory.
Contact and support Cole Birmingham through the links below.
Society6: society6.com/thesc3ne
IG: instagram.com/the.sc3ne
@the.sc3ne
Email: jcbirm18@gmail.com
Published JST, Tuesday October 01, 2024