Faces of Holi, 3/7/10

Last week was one of my favorite annual events, the Hindu spring festival Holi (also called Phagwah or the Festival of Colors) out in Richmond Hills, Queens. It was my third time attending, and in addition to group photos I also concentrated on a series of portraits.

The weather was beautiful, with bright skies and a bit of a breeze to kick up the colors. Enjoy the photos, and if you see one of yourself in there post a comment and say Hi!

Gay Parade NYC, 2009

This year we arrived at our favorite spot before the parade actually started, so managed to see Dykes on Bikes! But the early start meant we also got tired of standing and I left about 3 hours into it … even though the parade was only half done. Other highlights were seeing my friends march with GOAL, and of course the after-parade scene in the West Village where revelers were all too eager to pose for the camera.

Holi, 3/15/09

Today was my second time attending the Hindu spring festival Holi (also called Phagwah or the Festival of Colors) out in Richmond Hills, Queens.

Last year I had no idea what to expect, and it took me a while to get into it. I was also worried about dust on the camera. This year I planned ahead and made a clear plastic camera cover.

There’s a short and sweet parade, mostly for sponsors and politicians. But the fun really starts at the end when the crowds gather in the park to exchange colors. Everyone goes a little wild, with kids throwing colored powder, baby powder, and also color liquid at eachother. The teenagers get really crazy, but the little kids and grownups get into it too.

The rowdiness is fun but never gets out of control. Everyone is smiling and laughing. The festivities really bring people together, and total strangers have no shyness about approaching eachother to apply colors.

In the photo of me above, each unique color was gently and lovingly applied by hand by a different total stranger.

Trevor Brown: Stripping the Familiarity from the Everyday, New York Times, 3/7/09

The opening for Trevor’s exhibit “Ordinary Wonderful” was a huge success. He wowed them with his presentation–and presence–and got a nice write up in the new New York Times blog “The Local.”

Cheer New York is looking for male fliers. (Well, who isn’t?) Speaking of fliers, I’ve donated the use of a photo for their flyer (above) which you may see around town soon.

It was fun to watch this group of intrepid boaters put their canoe in the water at the end of Huron Street in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. It was a little tricky for them — this wasn’t an official NYC Water Trail landing site. After one dip in the East River, they managed to launch o.k.

George Takei + Brad Altman, originally uploaded by Atomische.com.

Get soaked, steam a little, dry, repeat.

Despite the rain, or perhaps because of it, I had a very enjoyable time at the 2008 Gay Parade. Instead of our usual spot we decided to head uptown a little — 27th street — and found a great area on the corner where we could take photos head-on. It was a lot easier to engage marchers from behind the barricades. There was plenty of room too, so no standing motionless for hours. More photos coming soon!

Yesterday I went to the Folsom Street East fair — New York City’s little cousin to the famous San Fransisco event. It was a great day for a kinky event. Hot enough for the exhibitionists to feel comfortable wearing next-to-nothing, sometimes just a smile. The rubber and latex lovers didn’t duck for cover during the brief downpour.

Yesterday I went to the Mermaid Parade out in Coney Island. Hugely crowded. In fact, so crowded that I skipped the parade itself, and so missed the song-and-dance part of the show. I did see many amazing costumes in the staging area though. Which is the main reason I went. See my Mermaid Parade page for all the photos in one place.

Had a lovely day yesterday walking around Astoria (Queens) with Michael. Highlights of the day included running into some fun kids on the secluded beach under Hell Gate (bridge, above) and wandering through the fallow industrial environs of 1st Street. More photos to follow on Atomische.com.

My friend Trevor is having a solo exhibition of photos on April 19th, called “Brooklyn Rises”. Check it out!

Rest In Peace! Here’s an alternate (gay) obituary for one of my all-time favorite science fiction authors: On The Search for Gay Obituaries: Arthur C. Clarke.