A new exhibition opening February 15 at the GLBT Historical Society Museum highlights the extraordinary vitality of queer nightlife in San Francisco's South of Market (SoMa) district during the darkest years of the AIDS crisis, an era that simultaneously marked the peak of AIDS activism and queer militant organising in the city.

«SoMa Nights: The Queer Club Photography of Melissa Hawkins»
Melissa Hawkins, Duo With Cigar, The Eagle (undated); used with permission.

«SoMa Nights: The Queer Club Photography of Melissa Hawkins» focuses on the work of Melissa Hawkins, a young photographer for the San Francisco gay weekly The Sentinel and other publications from 1986 to 1994. Her black-and-white images vividly capture the scene with a combination of frankness and intimacy reflecting her dual roles as journalist and nightlife participant.

«It was such an incredible time of creativity and expression, even in the midst of the tragedy of AIDS», Hawkins says. «In the daytime, you’d read an entire section of the paper filled with the names of people who had died. Then at night, you would go to the craziest parties on earth. It truly was about living every moment as if it were your last».

In an era before digital photography and at a time when some LGBTQ people were still hesitant to make their identities public, Hawkins had both the gear required to shoot first-rate photos and the connections needed to gain the trust of her subjects. The results are powerful images documenting parties at 177 Townsend, 1015 Folsom, The Eagle, The End Up, The Rawhide and The Stud in SoMa, as well as The Box in the Western Addition.

Co-curated by Hawkins and nightlife historian Marke B., the GLBT Historical Society Museum show will feature dozens of these never-before-displayed photos, along with memorabilia including flyers, posters, clothing and decorative artefacts selected to recreate an indelible moment in San Francisco and queer nightlife history. Special events associated with the show will include dance parties and celebrity panel discussions.

«SoMa Nights» opens Friday, February 15, at the GLBT History Museum, 4127 18th St., San Francisco, with a public reception set for p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The curators will offer introductory remarks, and light refreshments will be served. Admission is $5.00; free for members of the GLBT Historical Society. Tickets are available online at Eventbrite.com.

For more information, visit the GLBT Historical Society website at www.glbthistory.org.

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