2020 has seen the reimagining of gay Pride events all over the world since the first parade in 1970, one year following the Stonewall uprising. As the public health protocols surrounding COVID-19 seem to evolve daily, many Pride events that were initially canceled have been reconfigured into a virtual format, creating a near-global celebration that crosses borders, cultures and languages that bodies cannot.

Post Pride at ace/121 Gallery marks the first exhibition for many of the artists featured since the issuance of the Safer-At-Home Order. The show was conceived before COVID-19 hit, and the Order seemed to make its themes all the more relevant.

The nine artists featured in the show – Dorian Katz, Emery Nunez, Emiliano Aguirre, Jo Ann Block, John Calavitta, Juan Velasquez, Nelson Munares, Shelley Heffler and Violenta Flores – reflect myriad meditations on queerness and Pride with a particular focus for some on social and racial issues, highlighting the intersectional themes that Pride has come to represent.

From archival work that has found new relevance to new works produced since the pandemic, the artists represented rose to a call of considering when and how a world can be reimagined amidst COVID-19 during – and after – Pride, forever intertwined with the country’s pandemic of racism. The visual appearance of Pride – and how these artists have found ways to display it – has changed drastically over the last months, and these artists’ depictions of self and others offer a gesture toward how we all might emerge from quarantine, in solidarity, toward a common – and possible – future.

To view the exhibition, visit www.ace121gallery.com/post-pride.

This exhibition is made possible by the Eisner Foundation and LA County Arts Commission. It is presented by EngAGE with support from Meta Housing. It is curated by Ben Evans.