Charles W. Leslie was one of the fathers of modern SoHo in New York, and he also had the biggest penis art collection in the world. Together with his late partner Fritz Lohmann, he founded the first-ever museum dedicated to gay and lesbian art. His incredible story is told in “The Art of Looking“ by acclaimed author Kevin Clarke and it makes for a really fascinating read.
In 1969 Charles and Fritz started showing some of their extensive collection in their own Soho Apartment. Later during the AIDS pandemic of the 1980s a lot of really good gay art was been thrown away or destroyed by families intent on trying to hide their loved one’s sexuality, and Charles and Fritz knew that these really should be preserved. They collected whatever they could lay their hands on and formed a small non-profit organization which eventually developed into the Leslie Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art which still flourishes today.
Posted by queerguru at 16:43
Labels: 2016, culture, eye candy, nudity
