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Lot Essay
In 1992, Nan Goldin travelled to Thailand and the Philippines to document the widespread gay prostitution and subculture of the region. Since her 'dbut' at The Other Side, Boston's foremost drag queen venue in the early 1970's, Goldin had obsessively pictured the beauty of the 'ambiguous nocturnal creatures' that she called her 'friends'.
In Asia, she became closely acquainted with the young drag queens she met in the bars and clubs and captured their ephemeral radiance in a much-acclaimed series of photographs. Her portraits of C, Yogo and So, the stars of the Second Tip in Bangkok, are among the most successful of the series.
Goldin recalls: "The bar Second Tip in Bangkok reminded me of The Other Side. The queens were beautiful, the shows were lavish productions with numerous costumes. The older queens didn't retire; they managed the bar and performed comedy routines on stage. In Manila they called me 'mother', in Bangkok 'sexy grandma'." (In: 'Nan Goldin. The Other Side', Manchester 1993, pp. 8-9.)
In Asia, she became closely acquainted with the young drag queens she met in the bars and clubs and captured their ephemeral radiance in a much-acclaimed series of photographs. Her portraits of C, Yogo and So, the stars of the Second Tip in Bangkok, are among the most successful of the series.
Goldin recalls: "The bar Second Tip in Bangkok reminded me of The Other Side. The queens were beautiful, the shows were lavish productions with numerous costumes. The older queens didn't retire; they managed the bar and performed comedy routines on stage. In Manila they called me 'mother', in Bangkok 'sexy grandma'." (In: 'Nan Goldin. The Other Side', Manchester 1993, pp. 8-9.)