David Wojnarowicz

David Wojnarowicz, “Untitled [One day this kid…]”, 1990, print on canvas, Courtesy of the Estate of David Wojnarowicz and P.P.O.W. Gallery, New York

In Untitled [One day this kid…], a photo-text collage from 1990, David Wojnarowicz includes a 1950s snapshot of himself as a young boy, surrounded by a foreboding text that outlines the probable outcome of the discovery of his homosexuality.  The boy finds out that his desire is not controlled by himself, but by the family, church, school, medical community, law enforcement and government, and that he inevitably will be driven to conform, be silent, or suffer the disciplines of society.

It is Wojnarowicz’s refusal to be silent that imbues the work with such power.  His heavily documented life and the art he produced have become examples of one man’s attempt to awaken social consciousness and transform the world’s disdain into a powerful indictment against intolerance and apathy.

excerpts:
by Dan Cameron and Dennis Szakacs, New York
http://www.queer-arts.org/archive/9902/wojnarowicz/wojnarowicz2.html