Open+Bloot #3: Queering the Stripclub
Studio/K and Stripclub Life Drawing are excited to combine forces again and welcome you back to Open+Bloot #3: Queering the Stripclub, where we dive further into the importance and hotness of queer-centred stripclubs, as well as interact with the art, politics and poetics of stripping. This event consists of two parts: a film screening of SHAKEDOWN (2018) and a life drawing workshop by Stripclub Life Drawing. Tickets can be purchased for both events separately, or for a lower combined rate when visiting both the screening and workshop. Discount tickets are meant for queer/BIPOC cuties, and people who are not able to afford the full price. We trust you to choose the option that suits your situation best <3
We start off at 14:00 with a screening of SHAKEDOWN (2018), a film on the joy, challenges, and realness of Black lesbian stripclubs. Shot in a style reminiscent of home videos, it dynamically centers queer Black expression and underground stripclub culture. At the same time, it shows the challenges that initiatives like Shakedown have dealt with and continue to face; as well as the need to keep these spaces alive. Before the screening, we will collectively read a text from Pleasure Activism by adrienne maree brown to set the tone.
After the screening of SHAKEDOWN (2018), we will continue at 16:00 with a Stripclub Life Drawing session with performer Luna, who is a studio owner, sensuality coach, and passionate pole dancer in- and outside of nightlife.
About Stripclub Life Drawing:
Stripclub Life Drawing hosts life drawing events with strippers as models, who display poses in and around the pole for you to draw. You’ll get to learn about the stripclub and art of stripping, as well as drawing tips and prompts to focus on in your artwork. Stripping is an art, just like any other, which we think shouldn’t be left in the dark. In this workshop they want to show you the joy in their job and make you experience the stripclub in a slightly different way. No prior experience is needed to attend this workshop! Stripclub Life Drawing is a drawing workshop in which the art of stripping is central. We have some materials (oil pastels, pens, sketching paper), but please feel free to bring your own materials if you have any other preference that isn’t listed.
About the film:
SHAKEDOWN (2018) is the story of Los Angeles’ black lesbian strip club scene and its genesis. Owned and operated by women, underground and illegal in nature, the club Shakedown is the darker, faster, younger iteration of this dance culture. The film is a window into this world. Shakedown emerged from a post-RIOTS, post-OJ, post-integration but still very racially divided Los Angeles. In this divided city Shakedown is an independent, all black and all female cash economy.
The film chronicles the explicit performances and personal relationships of the party’s dancers and organizers including Ronnie-Ron, Shakedown Productions’ creator and emcee; Mahogany, the legendary “mother” of the community; Egypt, their star performer; and Jazmine, the “Queen” of Shakedown.
