CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
Scroll To Top![A photo from gallery slideshow in the Excavating Experience: The Presence of LGBTQ People of Color in Cook County, IL exhibit.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 938 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Read more by clicking "MORE" button at right](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1117 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Read more by clicking "MORE" button at right](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1134 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Read more by clicking "MORE" button at right.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 514 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Shadi Beidas, Illinois Leather Sir 2016.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1077 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Read more by clicking "MORE" button at right](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1115 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![10.\tMr. Chicago Leather winner (name omitted).](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 740 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Read more by clicking "MORE" button at right](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 888 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![The cover of #4 of Brat Attack, a short-lived punk dyke magazine.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 875 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Excerpt\u2013Allegra's Story: Surviving Chicago in the 80's](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1295 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![ONYX is a leather fraternal back patch club](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1019 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Etienne/Dom Orejudos (1933-1991)](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 528 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Mr. ONYX Leather 1998 title vest worn by Mufasa Ali.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1044 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![A photo from gallery slideshow in the Excavating Experience: The Presence of LGBTQ People of Color in Cook County, IL exhibit.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 972 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![BlackOut 7 run book; flyer for BlackOut party.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 909 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![A photo from gallery slideshow in the Excavating Experience: The Presence of LGBTQ People of Color in Cook County, IL exhibit.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 974 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![BlackOut 9 run pin.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 881 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Postcard announcing 1st anniversary BlackOut run.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1191 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Mr. Chicago Leather 2005 title vest, belonging to Jeff Willoughby.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 636 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![A photo from gallery slideshow in the Excavating Experience: The Presence of LGBTQ People of Color in Cook County, IL exhibit.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 912 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![Close-up detail of leather vest belonging to Mr. ONYX Leather 1998 title holder Mufasa Ali. The vest displays years worth of club pins and run pins, including many from ONYX.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1014 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![pins](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 1166 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![pins](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 955 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![A photo from gallery slideshow in the Excavating Experience: The Presence of LGBTQ People of Color in Cook County, IL exhibit.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns='http://www.w3.org/2000/svg' viewBox='0 0 943 750'%3E%3C/svg%3E)
![close button](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCA0OCA0OCI+PHBhdGggZD0iTTI0IDRDMTIuOTUgNCA0IDEyLjk1IDQgMjRzOC45NSAyMCAyMCAyMCAyMC04Ljk1IDIwLTIwUzM1LjA1IDQgMjQgNHptMTAgMjcuMTdMMzEuMTcgMzQgMjQgMjYuODMgMTYuODMgMzQgMTQgMzEuMTcgMjEuMTcgMjQgMTQgMTYuODMgMTYuODMgMTQgMjQgMjEuMTcgMzEuMTcgMTQgMzQgMTYuODMgMjYuODMgMjQgMzQgMzEuMTd6IiBmaWxsPSIjOTgwMDAwIiBjbGFzcz0iZmlsbC0wMDAwMDAiLz48cGF0aCBkPSJNMCAwaDQ4djQ4SDB6IiBmaWxsPSJub25lIi8+PC9zdmc+)
![]()
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
A photo from gallery slideshow in the Excavating Experience: The Presence of LGBTQ People of Color in Cook County, IL exhibit. Read about this exhibit by clicking "MORE" button at right.
Chicago is arguably the birthplace of the leather and fetish scene in the US. The exhibit “Excavating Experience: The Presence of LGBTQ People of Color in Cook County, IL” shows how people of color contributed to this culture.
The Leather Archives & Museum is a precious gem of a museum in the Rogers Park/Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago. The leather and fetish world, not unlike the court system in the drag world, is a stabilizing substructure of the LGBTQ world at large. Organized balls, events, parties, and special interest bars have assured a cohesive community that documents its history.
The Leather Archives & Museum, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary this fall, has been repeatedly named to popular offbeat tourist destination lists (Chicagoist, RoadTrippers, Chicago NPR station WBEZ, and more), and acts as a community hub for adult programming throughout the year, welcoming locals and tourists alike. Lectures, screenings, and events at the museum are diverse in nature, and its programming — such as the "Excavating Experience" exhibit — seeks to reflect contributions from everyone involved in the BDSM/leather/fetish/kink communities.
"Practicing kink is universally a part of sexual exploration,” says museum executive director Rick Storer. “The LA&M is excited for this exhibit to show how people of color in Chicagoland have practiced and performed leather/fetish sex, and how they have built community around it." Storer says exhibits like this one are critical to the museum's core mission, and that contributions to BDSM/leather/fetish/kink communities by people of color must be visible.
"Excavating Experience: The Presence of LGBTQ People of Color in Cook County, IL" runs until January 8t at the Leather Archives & Museum, 6418 N. Greenview Ave. in Chicago.
xtyfr
More Galleries
Christopher Harrity
Christopher Harrity is the Manager of Online Production for Here Media, parent company to The Advocate and Out. He enjoys assembling online features on artists and photographers, and you can often find him poring over the mouldering archives of the magazines.
Christopher Harrity is the Manager of Online Production for Here Media, parent company to The Advocate and Out. He enjoys assembling online features on artists and photographers, and you can often find him poring over the mouldering archives of the magazines.