@demetri_lopez211: When life feels unstable, artists often keep communities functioning • Harlem rent parties (1920s): neighbors held home concerts to cover rent; musicians played, a hat was passed, and information circulated alongside music. • Savoy Ballroom (opened 1926): one of the first racially integrated dance halls; social dancing doubled as community glue across hard times. • Paradise Garage × GMHC (1982): the club hosted “Showers,” an early AIDS fundraiser, raising tens of thousands for community health. Parties = public health. • ACT UP + Gran Fury (late 1980s): artists turned posters, billboards, and bus ads into an information network when official messaging failed. • Wigstock (from 1984): a free outdoor drag festival that built connection and visibility amid the AIDS crisis. • ABC No Rio (founded 1980): a collectively run art space born from a housing protest; shows, zines, and organizing hub for a struggling Lower East Side. • Ballroom houses (1980s–90s): chosen-family networks that shared health info, hosted benefits, and offered material support alongside culture. In shaky moments, culture and art isn’t extra…it’s infrastructure. #ArtAsInfrastructure #ceramics #CommunityCare #NYCHistory #HarlemRenaissance

Demetri Sebastian Lopez

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Region: US

Tuesday 19 August 2025 22:49:04 GMT