November 2021 - Page 2

New Year is the best time to make a loved one happy, and boxes wrapped in gold bows are an integral part of the New Year. The process is more enjoyable if it is a book that prepares a number of enjoyable adventures for the reader.

Offer 8 books on the subject of queerness, which can be an ideal gift for the queer and not only queer people:

Orlando – Virginia Woolf

Translator – Lela Dumbadze

“Orlando” is a cult classic by British author Virginia Woolf, which tells the story of a young nobleman, Orlando, who lives in Great Britain during the time of Elizabeth. At the age of 30, Orlando travels to Constantinople for diplomatic purposes, where she changes her gender and becomes a woman. In the Phantasmagoric Book, Orlando does not grow old and lives for 300 years. During these 300 years, Wolf plays the role of a chronicler and tells us what life is like for women.

Middlesex – Between the Sexes – Jeffrey Eugenides

Translator – Ramaz Khatiashvili

The Pulitzer Prize-winning book Middlesex is by Jeffrey Eugenides, an American author of Greek descent. “Middlesex” is a very diverse novel, which is not limited to the description of intersex human life and tells the heartbreakingly heartbreaking story of the Greco-American family and, at the same time, perfectly describes the fundamental political or social changes in twentieth-century America.

Dissolution – David Gabunia

Davit Gabunia is a modern Georgian playwright, writer and translator, in whose plays you will meet many queer themes and feminist issues. The novel “Dissolution” was published several years ago and tells the story of one family. Tina and Zura’s family may seem ideal at first glance, but everything changes after Zura starts stalking a gay man next door.

Queer Feelings (Translation Collection)

Translators – Salome Kinkladze, Nargiza Arjevanidze, Nukri Tabidze, Lasha Kavtaradze, Ana Iluridze, Mariam Kajaia

Queer Feelings is a collection of translations published with the support of the South Caucasus Regional Office of the Heinrich Boell Foundation. The book combines essays by queer and feminist authors (Yves Kosovski Sejwick, Audrey Lorde, Jose Esteban Munoz, Anne Tsvetkovic, Sarah Ahmed, Lauren Berlant, Dean Speed). The collection of essays asks critical questions and tries to answer with the reader what the queer theory is, how gay and lesbian movements take shape today, what the fight for stone rights means, and so on.

Tskvdiad’s left hand – Ursula Le Guin

Translator – Nika Samushia

The Left Hand of Tskvdiad is a science fiction novel by Canadian author Ursula Le Guin, published in the 1960s and revolutionizing the science fiction genre. The action in the novel takes place on the fictional planet Gethen. On a snow-covered planet, where there is no simple definition of woman and man, the king becomes pregnant and lives people who, it can be said, have no sex.

Watches – Michael Cunningham

Translator – David Akriani

“Clocks” is a 21st century novel by Michael Cunningham, which tells the story of women living in three different times, in the city and in society. The first character, Virginia Woolf, is trying to deal with mental problems. The second protagonist is a reader of Virginia Woolf in the late 40s, after World War II, in a traditional, unmarried marriage. The third character is Clarice, who lives in modern times. The story of queer women perfectly reflects the role of women in three different times and offers the reader an interesting rethinking of queer and feminist issues.

Purifier – Andro Dadiani

“Purifier” is a poetic collection of contemporary Georgian queer author and artist Andro Dadiani, in which the author tells us with uncompromising nature about the difficulties of being born a queer person, the pain that destroys people’s lives, a society that does not recognize minority rights and kills transgender people. Andro Dadiani is known to the Georgian society for his performances, with which the artist responds to various topical and painful political or social issues. Yet his poetry is more than just a reflection.

Roasted green tomatoes in the cafe “Whistle Stop” – Phany Fleg

Translator – Nino Mikashavidze

“Fried Green Tomatoes” is a real treasure trove of American literature and perfectly reflects the most difficult, major years of the American Depression of the last century. The novel, full of sadness and human stories, perfectly describes what minorities have gone through, what their lives have been like in the last century, and how American society has begun to increase its sensitivity to queer and not only queer issues.

Call me by your name – Andre Asiman

Translator – Guram Gongadze

“Call Me Your Name” is a book by Andre Asiman, which tells the story of 17-year-old Elio. The action in the novel takes place in the 1980s, in one of the provincial cities of Italy. A 24-year-old Oliver arrives as a guest in the family of university professors, towards whom Elio has feelings. The audience also saw the film adaptation of the exciting love story, where the main role is played by Timothy Shalame.

November 20 is International Transgender Remembrance Day, on which people around the world pay tribute to transgender people who have been victims of transphobia / homophobia.

We present 7 films that present the lives of transgender people from different angles, their struggle for LGBT + rights and equality.

Ma Vie en Rose (My Life in Pink) 1997

Ma Vie en Rose (My Life in Pink) is a film by Belgian director Alain Berliner. The Golden Globe-winning film tells the story of one family. Hannah and Pierre have been dreaming for a long time and move into a new house with little Ludovico, who does not obey gender norms and introduces herself to everyone as a girl.

The cult film of the 90s very well shows how gender frameworks and definitions can harm a minor. The whole settlement is set against Ludovico. However, at the same time, the film with childish naivety describes Ludovico’s life in shades of pink.

Tangerine 2015

“Mandarin” is a 2015 film with an equal footing in the genres of comedy and drama. The girls decide to take revenge and embark on strange adventures.

The film also features non-professional actors and the entire film is shot on the iPhone 3 5S, with further editing and color correction done entirely through mobile apps. The film has won numerous prestigious awards.

Todo sobre mi madre (All about my mother) 1999

“All About My Mother” is a film by Pedro Almodovar, which brought great success to the Spanish director. Filmed with bright colors and strange scenery, the film tells the story of Manuela, who after the death of her son decides to travel from Madrid to Barcelona and meet Manuel’s father, a transgender woman who does not yet know that she had a child.

Pedro Almodovar’s Oscar-winning film is both dramatic and surprisingly funny, you will meet a lot of transgender people, gays, lesbians, sex workers in the film. The director responds with a characteristic handwriting to the AIDS outbreak of the 80s, the problems of stony love and human birth.

Raising Koi 2016

“Raising Koi” is a documentary film that responds to a high-profile incident that took place in 2013. Jeremy and Katherine are the parents of 5 children, one of the children, 7-year-old Koi, is a transgender girl, the child came out in kindergarten and everything went well, although the events developed dramatically after going to school. The girl has problems on the first day of school and the principal warns the parents that the child should only use the boys’s toilet.

Following a major change in the principal, the child’s parents, with the help of various NGOs, began to fight against unfair school charters and eventually achieved that every child in California today chooses which toilet to use and which sports to play in.

In a Year of 13 Moons (197 lunar year) 1978

“Year 13 of the Moon” is one of the latest films by the legendary German director Rainer Werner Fassbinder, which was dedicated to the memory of his girlfriend, Arvin Meyer. The film tells the story of a transgender woman, Elvira, who decides to change her gender because of her beloved man.

According to many film critics, Fassbinder’s 1978 film is the pinnacle of the director’s creativity. With poetic footage, dramatic storytelling, and flawless performance by Walker Spingler, the film perfectly depicts the life and hardships of a transgender person.

The Adventures of Priscilla Queen of the Desert 1994

The Adventures of Desert Queen Priscilla is another film that tells the story of three friends. A transgender, cross-dresser, and drag queen friends decide to drive to the desert to attend a drag queen evening.

Recognized as a classic, the film perfectly manages to portray marginalized groups with the help of comedy, all the characters in the film are free from stereotypes, however, at the same time, they do not lose their brightness and evoke positive emotions in the audience.

Wild Side 2004

“Wild Side” is a film by the modern French director Sebastian Lifshitz, which tells the story of Stephanie, who is involved in sex work. Stephanie returns from Paris to take care of her sick mother. The seemingly sad story changes after Stephanie develops feelings for his flatmates, Algerian Jamal, and Russian Mikhail.

In the film, there are themes which are very skillfully and easily changing, the themes of love and death, Stephanie, on the one hand, tries to cope with a sick mother with whom she has many unspoken issues, and on the other hand, tries to cope with a new relationship with two men. The title of the film is borrowed from a famous song by Lou Reed.

German and French soldiers in captivity of war, the secret twentieth-century American cross-dressing society, the glamorous Parisian cabaret dancers who disobeyed gender boundaries – these are the people you met in Sebastian Lifshitz’s photo collection though you had many in common, they lived at different times In a hostile society they tried to express themselves.

Sebastian Lifshitz has been collecting photos of crossdressers and drag quinces for 25 years. Collecting photos The French filmmaker and activist started in his teens, he wanted to understand how queer people lived in the past. In the lost, doomed photos he found the history of queer people and showed the new generation of queers where the struggle for sexual freedom began and what they had to convey to people living in a time when queerness meant the loss of life.

Why did you start collecting these photos?

Sebastian Lifshitz: As a teenager, I often went to antique markets where I came across lost photographs whose fate no one cared about. Since I was studying art and I loved photography, I was very excited to make such discoveries. So I started buying them and I accumulated a lot. These photos had no value for the seller, I was buying them at a very low price.

The anonymity behind the photos is awesome

Sebastian Lifshitz: These photos were not meant to hit the walls, at that time the public was very hostile towards queer people, so these photos were dangerous. Can you imagine these photos falling into the hands of someone who has bad intentions? This one person would definitely ruin the lives of these people. So I was amazed when I found these photos and bought them.

Queer culture is very popular in the media today and people think it is something new that has no past and no history. Which is very wrong. These people have always existed and my photos also tell the story of crossdressers and drag queend, I want to show people with these photos that this daring behavior has a past and it existed a long time ago.

These photos are comprehensive – they tell a very long history of crossdressers and drag queens at different times and places.

How did you connect these photos to different sections of history?

Sebastian Lifshitz: The photos are mostly from America and Europe. And, often, I found them one by one. I did not have any information about these photos, but over the years I have been doing research, which has resulted in very interesting links between the photos. For example, there was a connection between the Prisoners’ Camp, the Mock Wedding, and the Cabaret. I also bought photos of the Washington community together and soon realized that they were one group. They were a secret group who often met secretly and arranged parties where they wore what they did and felt safe. America was very strict with cross-dressers and LGBT + people before the war, so can you imagine what risks they had to take ?!

There are too many cross-dressers in these photos, so these photos are not just about cross-dressing, these photos are about identities, these are games that people play, this is our past politics and sometimes in these photos you will meet very personal. I do not want to have one particular feeling when looking at photos of a person interested in photography and queer culture. These photos are much more than just fun people and tailoring people of the opposite sex.

What prompted you to display these photos?

Sebastian Lifshitz: Collecting has no value if you do not share it with others. I tried to create stories, great stories in different parts and it was a very enjoyable process for me. These people in these photos to me are pre-punks, marginalized and rebellious people who had the courage and even managed to express themselves in a hostile environment. Because I love these photos, people believe that the past is more conservative, tougher and more correct, but that is not the case. The rebellious spirit has always existed and it can be seen in these photos as well – a celebration of the rebellious lifestyle.

Some of the photos are very old and I am fascinated by the liberal actions that were taking place in the nineteenth century. Why do you think it took so long to accept gender diversity?

Sebastian Lifshitz: A lot of people have hated crossdressers for years, and it still do. Even gay people do not have an acceptance of crossdressers, after the war, the gay community wanted to create a different image of gay men and it fit the macho elements … the label of the sexiest man. The gay community did not want to associate them with cross-dressers. It was considered a shame.

Very interesting is the series of photos of “Drag Soldiers”, which shows cross-dressing soldiers living in military camps in France and Germany after the First and Second World Wars. Why do you think people use gender identity for liberation?

Sebastian Lifshitz: There were only men in the military camps, so in the camp theater, men needed to adjust to women’s clothing to embody a female character. There was no other choice. That was the only solution. The most ridiculous fact is that some men were very popular for wearing women’s clothes in the camp and at the same time, these soldiers did not try to exaggerate gender representations, their roles and costumes were very realistic, which is very surprising considering the circumstances which are very difficult and It was repressive.

In your photos you will find one of the most legendary crossdresser, Bambi and the story of how a little boy turned into a queer woman.

Sebastian Lifshitz: Bambi is a very precious person to me. When I met her, I knew nothing about her, I only knew her name. One day she told me her story and we went together to Bambi’s hometown, Algeria. What fascinates her most about Bambi’s story is her ability to rewrite her own story.

Tell us more about Bambi.

Sebastian Lifshitz: Bambi was born in 1935 in a small, closed village in Algeria. At that time it was impossible to talk about sex, identity and similar topics. Can you imagine what life could have been like at that time, in a village for a 6-year-old boy who thought she was a little girl? Bambi’s mother allowed her young child to dress as the boy wanted, her hair was long, but at the age of 6, when it came time to go to school, her mother said, “Okay, now we have to cut our hair and stop dressing, it’s over, forget it.” At the time she realized she was biologically a boy – she always thought she was a girl.

For many, many years she had to live as a little boy, but deep down in her heart she felt like she was a girl. One day, when Bambi was 15 years old, French cabaret dancers visited the city and while watching their performance, Bambi realized that you might have a dignified life and not lose your identity. It was a kind of rebirth, after which she quickly traveled to Paris and joined the cross-dressing community. Although French society at the time was still hostile to crossdressers, it did not interest her, Bambi was not going to make a deal with the homophobic community.

What happened to Bambi after that?

Sebastian Lifshitz: At the age of 30, Bambi realized he could no longer continue dancing in the cabaret. So she decided to continue her studies, get a diploma and become a French teacher in a strange French city. She wanted be an anonymous woman. Anonymity was very important to her. She wanted to be an ordinary woman in everyday life. Now she is an elegant tall woman.

It is very inspiring to hear Bambi’s story about how she went to the cabaret and how she decided to make his life perfect. What should the new generation, who are in search of their own identity, focus on when studying history?

Sebastian Lifshitz: Society is more complex and tangled than it seems at first glance. There are traditional, ready-made models that have to be adapted, if you want to be a woman, you definitely have to look like a woman, if you want to be a man, it was necessary to look like a man, the division between the sexes is still very strong. Take a look at the little kids toys, it’s amazing how the toy forces the little one to adapt to the already existing models. For me it’s very painful, I do not like and I do not agree, because as I said above, people are more complex. The range of identities is so diverse and massive, people need to express themselves the way they want it to be and how they feel internally, unfortunately, often does not match the way we see them.

Source: DAZED

Photo:Sebastian Lifshitz

Translation:: Zura Abashidze

The open-air theater season will open on November 27, with a new play by Davit Khorbaladze, UNMEMORY. The play is about continuous transformation of memory. Over time, memory decays, and eventually events and facts are so damaged that, in fact, nothing can be left out of them. Constant is just change. I wonder how the human moving body adapts to variability.

The main target of the performance is the spectator memory, on which the play manipulates through music. Music that instills a sense of infinity is the most important element of UNMEMORY. With visual narratives full of sounds, allusions and associations, the group will try to create a model of the world that reaches out to a static past and selflessly strives to join the fluidity of the future.

Open Space is an independent art company that aims to develop visual and performing arts in Georgia. The aim of the company is to discover artists and give them the opportunity to develop professional skills, self-expression and connection with each other, to create an environment for complete creative freedom and unrestricted methods of self-realization.

Performance Working Group

Related: Davit Khorbaladze Against Stone Exoticism