NATIONAL QUEER ARTS FESTIVAL 2019

Queer Cultural Center stages an annual month-long multidisciplinary National Queer Arts Festival, documents significant Bay Area Queer arts events on our website, provides fundraising and other technical assistance services to emerging culturally-specific and gender-specific Queer arts groups, and conducts Creating Queer Community, a program that to date has commissioned more than 60 San Francisco-based artists to create new work. Since 1998, QCC has organized an annual month-long National Queer Arts Festival. To date, these Festivals have presented more than 400 different events featuring over 1000 Queer artists.

For the 22nd annual National Queer Arts Festival, we asked artists to look inside: what things do they need to know/accept or intensify in themselves to create a stronger individual who can pursue social justice; and outside: how do we forge alliances inside and outside of our Queer Communities to advance social equity?

How do we identify what we have in common and what we agree is not acceptable? How do we become more powerful by understanding not every difference is a problem and determining when it actually is? How do we look at our own multiple identities as Queers and create resolutions in ourselves?

We asked for art that speaks to the messy, difficult, rewarding & frustrating issues of coalition-building among communities and individuals; and make emotional, disturbing, inspiring, stimulating and wonderful art.

On a final note, this is my last Festival as Artistic Director and I want to take this opportunity to thank the thousands of artists, audiences and the incredible Qcc Boards and Staff who have surprised, amazed and supported me in the last 26 years. Thank you!

Pamela Peniston, Artistic Director