The Last Lesbian Bar in San Francisco (Photos)

The Lexington Club was the iconic dyke/lesbian/queer bar that operated for 18 years in San Francisco's Mission District until the last drink was served last year. "The Lex" was an internationally known beacon to lesbians, dykes, bois, queers, and their friends who came to the "gay mecca" of San Francisco. For many, it was more than a bar — it was a living room, a cultural center, a safe space. With its closure, the queer community is left to both remember it and reimagine new spaces in which they can come together and experience one another.

This exhibit of images and ephemera, curated by Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith of the Lexington Club Archival Project, aims to show the vibrancy of the community that formed around the Lex. Amidst changing patrons and aesthetics, the space transformed and was transformed by its community. The Bay Area is not the same without it.

Images from San Francisco's Last Lesbian Bar 1997-2015
Qulture Collective
1714 Franklin St., Oakland, CA 94612
The closing reception is 6-9 p.m., Friday October 7.

The documentary Never a Cover is currently screening. Check here for details.

Connect with the Archive here.

Ace Morgan is a professional photographer, personal trainer, and papa. Ace been taking photos and capturing his world around him since high school, age 16. Ace describes himself as a documentary-style photographer, seizing moments, from punk bands to serial killers, family and friends, queer activism, police brutality, community from Detroit to the Bay Area, and his daughter. Ace's work has appeared in a variety of zines and compilation books such as Maximum Rock and Rock. His work has been shown in galleries including Strange Loop Gallery (New York City), the Luggage Store Gallery (San Francisco), Alley Cat Bookstore (S.F.), the Lexington Club (S.F.), Femina Potens Art Gallery (S.F.), and 404 Willis (Detroit). Ace Morgan Photography's work can be viewed at www.acemorganphoto.com 

Molly DeCoudreaux is a photographer from Oakland, living in San Francisco, who works primarily in the nexus of food, portraiture, and travel photography. Molly's favorite subjects are people who wholeheartedly live their own truth, whether it be in the work they do or their expression of self. In working with the Lexington Club for many years, creating party fliers and posters, Molly exposed the walls of her studio to every blessed, babely, and hilarious thing under the sun. MollyDeCoudreaux.com 

"I remember when I first fell in love with the light and magic decanting from 3464 19th St. It is with gratitude and admiration that there was a space for my awkward lens to see and share in such a beautiful community unto its own. It lives on in our stories and secret smiles." — Cody T. Williams

Rebeka Rodriguez is an artist, curator, and cultural producer. She designs and implements creative programming that is responsive to the social, historical, and geographic contexts in which she works. She founded and produced BYOQ, a daytime festival featuring queer Bay Area music, art, fashion and performance. She is the director for AIR-SF, a nonprofit project committed to producing relevant public art projects and expanding civic participation. Currently, you can find her developing public art and education projects as the civic engagement manager at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Her photography practice seeks to reveal unconscious markers of identity and desire; this work includes portraiture, journalism, and collaborations with other artists.