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Description
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ToC Women We Love: Jetia Deity Embodies the Feminine Divine (p10); Rant: Why Queer Women Can Be Drag Queens, Too (p16); Wedding: Elena Delle Donne and Amanda Clifton Tie the Knot (p24); Fashion: Haute Butch Has You Suited Up in Style (p30); Music Talks: English Singer Alison Moyet Talks 'Other' (p70): Travel Bug: Bite Into the Bounty of West Sweden (p78)
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issue
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1
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Date Issued
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Feb-Mar 2018
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Format
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PDF/A
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Publisher
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Frances Stevens
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Curve_Vol28_No1_February-March-2018_OCR_PDFa.pdf
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extracted text
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L I V I N G
T R U E
LIVING
Spring
Open yourself to our exclusive perspective
on lush lesbian living, including interior
and outdoor design, plus a focus on health,
fitness and renewal.
TRUE
Summer
Allow yourself to be inspired by leading
queer women. Hear the voices of modern
female executives, artists, activists, and
the celebrities who engage us.
4 timesayear
curvemag.com
Fall
Embrace a more expansive view of
beauty. From androgynous fashion to
diverse body image, distinctive looks to
dress a beauty and a butch.
Winter
Get cozy with inspiring and beautifully
photographed food, drink and travel
stories, appearing alongside seasonal
recipes and holiday ideas.
MASTHEAD
CURVE
LIVING
TRUE
feb/mar2018 » volume28 number1
Publisher Silke Bader
Founding Publisher Frances Stevens
EDITORIAL
Editor-in-Chief Merryn Johns
Senior Copy Editor Katherine Wright
Contributing Editors Victoria A. Brownworth, Lyndsey D'Arcangelo,
Janelle and Melany Joy Beck, Gillian Kendall, Dave Steinfeld
Editorial Assistants Gemma Dart
OPERATIONS
Director of Operations Jeannie Sotheran
PROOFING
Proofreader Melanie Barker
ADVERTISING
National Sales Rivendell Media (908) 232-2021
Email todd@curvemagazine.com
ART/PRODUCTION
Art Director Bruno Cesar Guimaraes
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER
Gemma Dart
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS
Kelsy Chauvin, Chloe Curran, Amy Deneson, Madeleine Gray, Sassafras Lowrey, Agunda Okeyo,
Stephanie Schroeder, Brandi Amara Skyy, Yana Tallon-Hicks, Lisa Tedesco
CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATORS & PHOTOGRAPHERS
Steph Brusig, Erica Camille, Grace Chu, Shelby Coley, Sheryl Kay, Sara Lautman,
Syd London, Maggie Parker, Diana Price, B. Proud, Robin Roemer, Leslie Van Stelten
CONTACT
Curve Magazine
PO Box 1099
Darlinghurst NSW 1300 , Australia
Phone (415) 871-0569
Subscription Inquiries (800) 705-0070 (toll-free in US only)
Advertising Email todd@curvemagazine.com
Editorial Email editor@curvemag.com
Letters to the Editor Email letters@curvemagazine.com
Volume 28 Issue 1 Curve (ISSN 1087-867X) is published 5 times per year (February/March, Spring, Summer, Fall,
Winter) by Avalon Media, LLC, PO 1099 Darlinghurst NSW 1300, Australia. Subscription price: $35/year, $49 Canadian (U.S. funds only) and $75 international (U.S. funds only). Returned checks will be assessed a $25 surcharge.
Periodicals postage paid at San Francisco, CA 94114 and at additional mailing offices (USPS 0010-355). Contents of
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4 CURVE
FEB/MAR
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Content
Women We Love: Jetia
Deity Embodies the
Feminine Divine.
The Oakland-based resident DJ and body
artist builds bridges between communities and creates spaces in which queer
women and women of color can express
themselves and feel free.
Rant: Why Queer
Women Can Be Drag
Queens, Too.
Lesbian Drag is a thing and we're not
talking about Drag Kings. We're talking
about cisgender female Drag Queens.
Come behind the scenes and discover
the vibrant stars of yesterday and today.
Wedding: Elena Delle
Donne and Amanda
Clifton Tie the Knot.
This private couple enjoyed the wedding
of their dreams courtesy of The Knot
magazine. And in addition to their big
day, they're giving back to the special
needs community.
6 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
70
Travel Bug: Bite Into
the Bounty of West
Sweden.
Music Talks: English
Singer Alison Moyet
Talks 'Other.'
Fashion: Haute Butch
Has You Suited Up in
Style.
This lesbian-owned and operated style
The chart-topping singer-songwriter has
Always a lesbian-friendly destination,
Sweden's wild and unspoiled West Coast
offers stunning seafood, nature and nautical culture for Scandinavian-centric
adventurers.
always been outspoken about her otherness, while creating gorgeous music for
more than 30 years-and
her LGBTQ
fans love her for it.
start-up is sure to suit butches, tomboys, transmen and masculine-identified
women in search of quality and self-expression.
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 7
OUR TEAM
Contributors
Agunda Okeyo
Patrisse Khan-Cullars
Writer,
producer,
Brandi Amara Skyy
Female Drag
Mihaela Noroc
The Atlas of Beauty
filmmaker,
A writer, drag artist, and activist
For four years Noroc has trav-
comedian and activist born in
who writes, says, and creates
eled continuously around the
Nairobi, Okeyo has called New
things that piss people off or
world, photographing
York City home for more than
inspires them to rise, Skyy cur-
and listening to their stories.
women
20 years. A proud Pan-African,
rently writes for BET and The
She has gathered 500 of these
Okeyo has been published in
Dallas Voice and has appeared
portraits for The Atlas of Beau-
Salon, The Daily Beast, lndiew-
in publications like The Advo-
ty. "Through this book I want
ire's Women and Hollywood,
cate, GenderFork, and The Drag
to honor the wonderful wom-
For Harriet, 0 Magazine, Okay
Queen Guide. She was named
en of our world. To show that
Africa, NBC and Women's Me-
one of Dallas' Latino leaders to
their beauty has no bounds, so
dia Center (WMC) founded by
watch by Latino Leaders Maga-
acceptance, love, and compas-
Jane Fonda, Robin Morgan and
zine, graced thousands of stag-
sion shouldn't either. I hope this
Gloria Steinem, among others.
es worldwide, opened for Lady
book will get into many homes
Okeyo has been featured as
Gaga and Jon Secada, and won
around the world, convincing
a rising producer and activist
the first ever Miss USof A Diva
more people that diversity is a
in Time Out New York, The New
in 2014. She loves cruising with
treasure and not a trigger for
Yorker, Essence, The Root, Black
her partner of eight years and
conflicts and hate. We are very
Enterprise, The Hollywood Re-
being the change she wishes to
different but at the same time
porter, Forbes, NBC, Huffington
see. Find out more about her at
we are all part of the same fami-
Post and The New York Times.
brandiamaraskyy.com.
ly. theatlasofbeauty.com.
8 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
WELCOME
Editorial
Drop
mea line
toletmeknow
whatyouthink
ofourfreshnew
direction.
Editor in Chief
Merryn Johns
W
elcome to the new Curve!We've listened to your
feedback and we've responded to your sugges-
tions with a re-launch of America's best-loved
magazine for LGBTQ women and their friends. Curve is
going quarterly to provide you with a quality reading experience to flt your precious leisure time in this digital age.
You'll still find inside each issue the in-depth features and
interviews that provide a deeper understanding of LGBTQ
and allied culture, as well as the beautiful images that
confirm our diversity in its myriad forms. So, welcome to
the new look Curve. Happy reading, and drop me a line to
let me know what you think of our fresh new direction.
merryn@curvemag.com
@Merrynl
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 9
WOMEN WE LOVE
Jetia
Deity
WhereSheCallsHome
types and expressions. It is my passion to
Originally from Maryland, I am currently
create safer, body positive spaces where
based in Oakland, in the Bay Area of Cal-
people of color (POC) can feel truly free. I
ifornia.
believe that music is a powerful unifying
HowSheIdentifies
I am a queer, two-spirited 'wombmyn.'
tool for healing that can bridge language
barriers, borders, and generations. I believe that my work advocates for liberation
and for radical self-expression.
What'sUpWithHer
As of now I have two DJ residencies in
Passion
Projects
Oakland. Body Party is a queer and sexy
I am most passionate about the shift
hip-hop party at the legendary Starline ev-
into global awakening where people are
ery first Thursday. And another bimonthly
privy to being mindful about their planet
event on first and third Wednesdays called
footprint and holistic approaches to well-
Juke Joint for grown folks that love upbeat
ness. More solar and wind-powered, more
rhythms and can two-step The Layover in
plants, less GMO and blood. I am pleased
the heart of downtown Oakland.
to announce my new YouTube channel
Creative
Soul
I see myself as a Ritual Artist. I lovingly
create content that embodies imagery,
soundscapes, and dance rituals born from
where I will explore these topics and what
it means to acknowledge this shift and the
rise of the Feminine Divine.
KeepInTouch
the African diaspora for the purpose of
Follow me on lnstagram, Soundcloud, and
DNA healing. My events and appearances
Youtube @DJDEITY and @JetiaDeity for
reflect the many faces of the Feminine Di-
mixtapes, art videos, and more.
vine. Oftentimes, attendees at my events
will be stimulated with visuals and wild
go-go dancers (sometimes me) of all body
visitoakland.com
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 11
TRENDS I BEAUTY
OfTheir
OwnVolition
Skincare created and crowdfunded
by diverse women.
lUIIMEltlC
BRIGHTEN1I
NG
POLISH
If you've found yourself disappointed by commercial beauty
products made in laboratories by male scientists, and focused
on female aging for a billion-dollar industry, Volition is for you.
Co-founded by two women, Brandy Hoffman and Patricia Santos
(together they have 40 years experience in skincare), Volition
challenges the beauty industry's status quo and empowers
women to reinvent the beauty paradigm with woman power.
Volition is crowd-sourced by women: female consumers submit
their ideas and experiences to create useful beauty products,
with only the best and most supported ideas going into
production. Meet the creators and their unique creations.
volitionbeauty.com
12 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
TRENDS I BEAUTY
I
Oil-Control
MattifyingMist
Innovator:
Alice
Developed by a fitness blogger, this
refreshing mist is perfect for
post-workout revitalization and helps
stabilize oil production through amino
acid complex, improving skin moisture
Turmeric
Brightening
PolishForFace
andBody
Innovator:
Anuradha
With her Indian background, Anuradha
understands the powerful properties
of the ancient golden spice turmeric,
favored by Indian brides on their
wedding day. This tux scrub is gentle
levels. Good for all skin types.
and effective, and is vegan and cruelty-
Oceanene
Youth-Boost
Gel
HelixAM/PM
EyeGel
free, without chemicals.
Innovator:
Julie
Innovator:Lindsey
This beauty entrepreneur has
Formulated by a makeup artist from
invented a gel made with brown
algae, hyaluronic acid and Vitamin
C, ingredients that assist collagen
production and brighten, moisturize
and plumps skin, creating 76 percent
reduction of wrinkles.
snail mucin, allantoin, collagen and
elastin, this little wonder provides
long-term anti-aging benefits, renews
the eye area, while cooling and gently
de-puffing skin.
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 13
TRENDS I GIFTS
0
Eve's
Toybox
The Satisfier 1, Next Generation generates waves of pressure for clitoral
stimulation. Affordable, quiet and
travel-friendly. evestoys.com
0
AllintheWrist
These fierce wrist cuffs by NiK Kacy
are made in a small artisan shop in
Portugal and symbolize harmony and
equality. nikkacy.com
G
Charm
Her
Chamilia by Swarovski brings you
Spoken Emoji Petite charms in sterling
silver or 14 karat gold with sparkling
crystals. chamilia.com
0
Between
theCovers
Make your Valentine's Day steamy one
with with a lusty lesbian volume of
female-to-female passion.
cleispress.com
0
Laurent-Perrier
Champagne
Nothing says "I love you" like French
Champagne, especially this rosy 100
percent Pinot Noir Cuvee Rose.
laurent-perrier.com
0
SheCraves
It
The Crave Bullet is a powerful, discreet, enhanced stainless steel vibe
that makes a stylish and uniquely
portable gift. lovecrave.com
14 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
TRENDS I GIFTS
1
0
--
0
I j
0
·--Ill>!!~-=======~
BEST
ESBIAN
EROTICA=::
0
G
/
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 15
RANT
I FEMALEDRAG
was a newly out lesbian when I
I
In New York, artists like Carmelita
saw my first drag queen at age
Tropicana were playing with camp
deeply aware of what drag means
sixteen. Her name was Aaron Da-
and drag aesthetics since the early
to us as a community-and
vis and she was bucking the house
'80s. In the '90s, The World Famous
torical significance in our LGBTQ
down in her big blonde Texas pag-
*BOB,* a self-proclaimed female-fe-
fight for equality. I know that my
eant hair, doing backhand springs in
male impersonator, was living her
gay male brothers have been beat-
six-inch stilettos. I knew right then
life both onstage and off as the fab-
en on the streets and some-times
and there that was what I wanted to
ulous queen that she is. And in 2004
killed because they wanted to wear
do-and
I've dedicated the last 23
in Seattle, The Queen Bees were an
the clothes that society assigned to
years of my life making my sixteen-
all-inclusive performance troupe that
me at birth. I understand that drag,
year-old dream come true.
performed alongside drag queens.
like our gay bars, are our safe spac-
as a queer woman of color, I am also
its his-
But I'm just one of the many cis-
One of their members, Kentucky
es we've created for ourselves when
gender women who have been doing
Fried Woman, would later be one of
the rest of the world condemned us
drag longer than RuPau/'sDrag Race
four women to pen and read the Bio
for wanting the right to love who
fans have been "drag" lovers.
Queen Manifesto-an
love. Nor can I deny that within drag
open letter
When I was first coming out of the
that addressed conference policy
I hold a certain amount of privilege
queen closet, I found the term "faux
on bio queen performances in king
because the same social stigmas
queen" buried in a Wikipedia article
spaces-at
don't apply to me when I walk into
about drag queens. I clicked on the
Drag King Extravaganza aka IDKE3.
the 2001 International
a department store dressing room
link and my world as I knew it blew
It was an herstoric moment and one
with "girl" clothes. So, I get our need
up; I was home. The first female drag
that proves our fight to be taken se-
to protect the sanctity of drag, I re-
queen to pop up was Fauxnique from
riously as drag performers started
ally do.
San Francisco who made herstory
long before RuPaul's 2016 tweet
as the first woman to win the Miss
equating what we do to the Miss Uni-
Trannyshack Pageant in 2003.
verse pageant.
Because I don't want drag stripped
from our radical queer roots either.
But what I don't get is us, the rain-
I followed her rhinestone bread-
Which is why now, when I hear Wil-
bow and diverse community we are,
crumbs and found other West Coast
lam insinuating that our performanc-
perpetuating heteronormative gen-
queens like Bea Dazzler, Holy Mc-
es are not drag because we are "real"
der norms to police queer women's
Grail, and Trixxie Carr. It was through
girls or I read article after article
access to drag when how we live and
them that I discovered the term "faux
about how we can't do drag and that
express our lives are anything but
queen" originated in San Francisco
we're appropriating gay male culture,
hetero, normative, or dichotomous.
and that there was an actual pag-
I get pissed.
eant for the kind of drag I did. The
Because drag isn't some bandwag-
Be-cause while drag may have been
birthed in the theater world in the
Faux Queen Pageant started in 1996
on we are just now jumping on. Drag
1800s, that is not the same drag we
and after a few years' hiatus was
is who we are and who we have been
perform today. Because once we em-
brought back in 2012 by former win-
for decades.
braced drag as our own, we queered
But as much as I want to rally be-
it-meaning we "gayed it up." In the
gest running female drag pageant in
hind all cis-women's (hell, every-
'60s, '70s, and '80s, drag became a
drag history.
body's) right to drag, I can't. Because
radical act that had nothing to do
ner Bea Dazzler, making it the lon-
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 17
RANT
I
FEMALEDRAG
with gender and everything to do
with protesting and subverting a
heterosexual culture that wanted to
shame us into complacency.
And to say that cis-women, espe-
Because
dragisn't
somebandwagon
wearejustnow
jumping
on.Drag
iswhoweareand
whowehavebeen
fordecades.
cially lesbians, cannot coexist within
this queer reclamation of drag is bullshit-not
to mention misogynistic
AF. Particularly since women, both
gay and straight, have been subverting traditional and socially accepted
gender expressions since we unlaced our corsets, unhooked our bustles, ripped off our pantyhose, zipped
up our first pair of jeans, and burned
our bras.
So while I agree with my gay male
counterparts that cis-women performing
drag (especially straight
ones) need to know its historical
context, I also believe a lot of gay
men and drag queens need to do
their due drag diligence, too. Because contrary to popular belief,
drag does not stand for dressed as a
girl-acronyms didn't come into general use until the '60s, centuries after
drag became part of our lexicon. It's
folk etymology that's been touted
as fact to police drag's borders and
dictate who and what can be considered a part of it.
But make no mistake, female drag
queens are and will forever be a part
of drag-and a viable form of it. Because we are the writers of our own
herstory-and
started.
18 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
we're just
getting
LIVING
TRUE
4 timesayear
••••
Spring
Open yourself to our exclusive perspective
on lush lesbian living, including interior
and outdoor design, plus a focus on health,
fitness and renewal.
WHERE WE LIVE
TheLandof
Enchantment
Shyla Sheppard and Missy Begay,
partners in business and in life, are
fostering a beer-lovers' community at their
Native-owned brewery and taproom in the
heart of the American Southwest.
AmyDeneson
20 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
WHERE WE LIVE
T
here's something brewing in
the land is based on our upbringing;'
mannpottery.com). And a mural of
Albuquerque. The craft beer
Begay continues. She was born in
a southwestern sunset spans the
movement is thriving way
Albuquerque and raised in the Dine
long, lively bar where bright beer ex-
out West, and nowhere is great spe-
Nation. Sheppard grew up on the
perts are a wellspring of knowledge
cialty beer more refreshing than at
Fort Berthold Reservation in North
and service.
the Bow & Arrow Brewing Company.
In February 2016, Shyla Sheppard
Dakota, where she is a member of
When you're sampling new seasonal taps, it's easy to make a night
the Three Affiliated Tribes.
and Missy Begay opened their tap-
"From a young age, we were taught
of it. Beers are served in flights,
room in this high-desert city near
that the land has its own spirit. And
5-ounce, 10-ounce, and 16-ounce
the pink Sandia Mountains, where
in my tribe, Mother Earth is our
pours, and can be taken home in
they serve wild, sour, and bar-
mother;' Begay says. 'The land pro-
sealed growlers. Bow & Arrow will
rel-aged beers that are brewed on-
vides water, earth, plants-every-
soon begin bottling their select bar-
site. In collaboration with their head
thing you need to brew great beer.
rel-aged beers. Guests certainly do
brewer, Ted O'Hanlan, they strive to
We're conscientious about where
sip and stay awhile. When hunger
integrate local ingredients that are
our ingredients come from, and we
arises, bar snacks include the local
both adventurous and unique to the
take great care in selecting them."
Popcorn Cannery's surprise flavors,
area.
"There is a long history in the
Southwest of cultures melding to-
Their vision for brewing great beer
like green chile and cheddar, and
also includes creating an enriching
pueblo bread and butter from Grand-
space for their community.
ma Jo's Bakery on the Laguna Pueb-
gether;' Begay says, when we con-
"We opened Bow & Arrow in our
lo. Out in the parking lot, food trucks
nect for an interview. "The indige-
own neighborhood;' Sheppard says.
serve tasty tacos, hot dogs, and
nous culinary tradition here is very
"We are committed to bringing peo-
more nosh, which can be devoured
strong."
ple together and were very cogni-
on the spot or delivered to the table.
"We're particularly proud of our for-
zant of how we designed the space
Sheppard and Begay also welcome
age-inspired series;' Sheppard says,
so that people can interact-even if
those with something to celebrate.
noting their Wild Sumac, described
they walk in by themselves."
in their beer menu as an earthy lem-
Pride parties and mixers for the lo-
From the taproom, in an indus-
cal LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce
and
have lit up their taproom. They've
"We're taking a super-common in-
steam-powered brewery is visible.
hosted a screening of The Whistle
onade with a desert sparkle.
trial
warehouse, the
steel
gredient;' Begay explains, referring
Yet the space is crisp and clean, and
by director StormMiguel Florez and
to local sumac berry, traditionally
as warm to the senses as the fine-
donated space for grassroots orga-
used for a tart pudding, "and sourc-
lined hop cone in their geometric
nizing, a Southwest-themed speaker
ing it from the Navajo Agricultural
hop-meets-arrowhead logo. Long
series, and neighborhood associa-
Products Industry, where it was
communal tables welcome an ebb
tion meetings. On Tuesdays, there's
handpicked by Navajo people, and
and flow of locals and visitors alike
yoga.
brewing it here to make a classic
in the arid country. Wildflower sprigs
Berliner Weisse, which has become
sprout from small bud vases hand-
really popular."
"Having a strong connection to
"We're all
about
promoting
a
healthy lifestyle;' Sheppard says.
made by the local pottery collec-
The partners fell in love with beer-
tive, Hanselmann Pottery (hansel-
and with each other-when they met
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 21
WHERE WE LIVE
in college at Stanford University.
monality is beer! Let's focus on that."
In addition to their studies in eco-
The Brewers Association, the nation-
nomics (Sheppard) and medicine
al umbrella organization for U.S. craft
(Begay), they learned about German
breweries, has recently developed a
beers at the nearby Gordon Biersch
diversity committee to address race
tavern and started traveling to ex-
and gender issues in the beer industry.
plore the craft breweries sprouting
"Everything from asking, 'Are cer-
up throughout the U.S.
Bow & Arrow was "born out of
tain beer labels offensive?' " Begay
says, "to trying to aggregate statistics
our love for landscape, food, and
about the industry." She mentions a
culture;' Begay says. "When open-
2014 study at their alma mater, Stan-
ing a brewery became a reality, we
ford University, noting that about 20
drew from our natural love of those
percent of craft breweries have a fe-
things."
male CEO or have a woman holding
Their name, Bow & Arrow, is described as representing self-reliance,
protection, flexibility, and skill.
"Have you experienced any resistance to your enterprise?" I ask.
"I experience what I'd call 'curios-
a management position, "which is a
huge and surprising percentage."
And while they do tend to work behind the scenes, Sheppard says, "We
recognize the value and significance
of being visible-as
women of color,
ity' on a daily basis;' Sheppard re-
as entrepreneurs, as business people
sponds. "I work behind the bar. I'm
making our way in a very male-domi-
serving people beer and interacting
nated industry."
with customers because I enjoy it.
"Shyla and I have had some really
But frequently, people are really sur-
great mentors along the way;' Begay
prised that we're the owners-to the
says, and expresses their commitment
point that they really question it and
to inspiring others. Sheppard and Be-
ask why we would want to do this:'
gay's approach is rooted in their belief
This is not new, she continues;
in Seven Generation Sustainability.
they have both excelled in other
"Speaking out and being visible is re-
male-dominated fields: Sheppard in
ally important for future generations;'
venture capital, and Begay as a prac-
Begay says, "so that they can freely
ticing physician.
aspire to do what they want to do,
"Add race and sexuality;' says
Sheppard, "and it's a bit too much
for some people. They don't know
how to approach you;' she says, with
whether they are gay or indigenous or
whatever."
Cheers to them and all they're creating at Bow & Arrow.
a tone of bewilderment in her voice.
"Which is a funny thing. Our com-
22 CURVE
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bowandarrowbrewing.com
WHERE WE LIVE
FEB/MAR
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FEATURESI WEDDING
24 CURVE
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FEATURESI WEDDING
Dream
Brides
Elena Delle Donne and
Amanda Clifton give back with
their dream wedding.
LyndseyD'Arcangelo
Last year, on November 3rd, in front
of 200 of their closest friends and
family members, WNBA All-Star and
MVP Elena Delle Donne married her
longtime girlfriend Amanda Clifton.
The two said "I do" at the Hempstead
House resort on the North Shore of
Long Island, N.Y. It was literally a
dream wedding, as Delle Donne and
Clifton were selected for The Knot's
Dream Wedding-a highly publicized
event in which one lucky couple gets
to live out their dreams and have everything planned for them by the best
of the best in the wedding industry.
"I don't know who wouldn't want
The Knot to give you your dream wedding;' Delle Donne laughed during a
phone call before the wedding took
place. "After we got engaged, my
agent called both of us and said that
a pretty cool opportunity had come
about with a magazine called The
Knot. They wanted us to be their first
same-sex couple for the Dream Wedding series. She asked if we were in-
FEB/MAR
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FEATURESI WEDDING
terested and of course we were."
Brooklyn-based
wedding
planner
Even though Delle Donne and Clif-
Jove Meyer and discussed their likes
ton had kept their relationship and
and dislikes. They said he kept them
private life out of the spotlight, as the
actively involved in all the details as
first same-sex couple to appear on
time progressed, emailing them dif-
The Knot's Dream Wedding they felt it
ferent options regarding the venue,
was a great opportunity to share their
flowers arrangements, dresses, and
love story with the world and help
rings. Once the All-Star break hit
break down some of the harmful ste-
mid-season, Delle Donne was able to
reotypes that still exist about same-
take some time to meet with Meyer
sex couples.
again, in person and with Clifton by
"Elena has always been super-pri-
her side. And after a game in New
vate, and I'm not-in any way, shape,
York City, they got together with their
or form;' joked Clifton. "We talked
moms to sample good food, includ-
about it and weighed that in, but at
ing four different types of wedding
the same time we knew it was a great
cakes. In the end, they decided on a
opportunity. We wanted to let people
cake with 11 tiers that stood over six
know it's OK to be gay and be public
feet high-yet, it was still shorter than
about it, and normalize what we are."
Delle Donne.
"That was another big reason for
Another aspect of the planning in-
saying yes to The Knot;' Delle Donne
volved what to do about wedding
added. "Obviously, it's great to have
gifts. As a high-profile couple, Delle
them plan the wedding, but to have
Donne and Clifton felt they already
it out there in People magazine, Us
had everything they wanted, and
Weekly,and all these different media
made the decision to do something
outlets is what we're all about-nor-
charitable instead.
malizing the fact that women get mar-
"[The Elena Delle Donne Founda-
ried to women, and men get married
tion) gives back to the special needs
to men. It doesn't matter. The more
community. And we like to give back
that people see things in the media
in a way where families who are
and on television, the more they be-
struggling to take care of their chil-
come normal, and it's not such a huge
dren with special needs have the re-
coming-out anymore. So, if we could
sources to make it a little bit easier;'
be a part of that process, that's what
Delle Donne said. "Also, the founda-
was really important for us."
tion gives money to Lyme disease
Once they were set on moving for-
and treatment. I've been dealing with
ward with The Knot, planning the
Lyme disease for eight and a half
wedding kicked off before the start
years, and the treatment and diag-
of the WNBA season. Delle Donne
nosis process isn't where it should
and Clifton sat down with renowned,
be. The Knot had the idea to set up
26 CURVE
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FEATURESI WEDDING
>-
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a:
FEB/MAR
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FEATURESI WEDDING
a registry to give money to the Elena
Delle Donne Foundation, and we were
immediately, like, yes! So, we were
super-excited to have our special day
and to be able to give back in some
way at the same time."
"The Knot has made it so seamless,
and it took a lot of the stress off of
us;' Clifton said. "I know a lot of brides
get wrapped up in the tiny details and
some things are just out of your control. But we just went with the flow
and enjoyed it." It was the first time
that everyone, on both sides of their
families, were together at once-and
it made their wedding day truly special. That, and finally getting to say "I
do" to each other.
"I love how real Amanda is;' Delle
Donne beamed. "She's true to her
feelings and can communicate those
feelings far better than I've ever been
able to, and she's got a huge heart for
all the people who are close to her."
"My favorite thing about Elena is
kind of the opposite;' Clifton said.
"Her willingness to keep everything
light and not take life too seriously.
She's always makes everything fun,
and says that life is not as serious as
I normally take it. She's the lighthearted one of us."
It sounds like their Dream Wedding
was a dream come true.
theknot.com/dreamwedding
28 CURVE
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FEATURESI WEDDING
>-
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>-
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a:
FEB/MAR
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FASHION
I DRESSINGUP
If you need to be suited out for your Valentine's Day date, look no further than Haute Butch, the
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Designed by KMichelle (aka Karen), the company's founder, designer, and CEO,Karen is also a U.S. Navy
Veteran and entrepreneur, and sits on the advisory board for the Fashion Studies Program at the Santa
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hautebutch.com
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 33
Floral
Dream
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andJoggers
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FASHION
I GENDERLESS
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Shop online: stuzoclothing.com
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 35
STYLE I ICON
36 CURVE
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STYLE I ICON
OurManChaz
Chaz Bono is finally hitting his stride.
VictoriaA. Brownworth
0
ff-screen Bono is the antith-
has been rewarding. It's clear AHS:Cult
myself;' but he knew he wasn't going to
esis of Gary Longstreet, the
has had an impact on Bono as an actor
be able to get male roles and he wasn't
cultist who cuts
and helped him to situate himself in his
good at traditional female roles. In 2011
off his own arm to be able to vote for
homicidal
career. But he would never be able to be
he returned to acting class and the craft
Donald Trump on FX's Ryan Murphy
part of a cult, he laughs, then gets se-
now drives him. "I auditioned for How
series, American Horror Story. Warm,
rious. "My girlfriend said, 'The gasoline
to GetAway with Murder.I was putting
engaging, and determined to put peo-
is fear. The election was just the match:
an audition on tape. My manager said
ple at ease, the famous son of famous
That's how cults are born'.' Anyone
'slow down' and I said 'I am prepping for
working with Shonda Rhimes!' "
parents whose mother, Cher,fights with
who's watched AHS: Cult can see an
Trump on Twitter, is a down-to-earth
eerie prescience between the rallies on
guy who just wants to act.
the drama and the rally that led to Char-
resisted taking trans roles. He didn't
lottesville in August 2017.
want to be typecast. "I'm an actor who
And act he does. Bone's understated
Unlike many trans actors, Bono has
yet forceful work on AHS:Cult sets the
For Bono, being part of Ryan Mur-
happens to be transgender. If you get
tone of the Us v. Them plot in his first
phy's coterie is a pivotal step for him
known best for doing stuff that isn't
interaction with Sarah Paulson, who
in a career he's returned to in earnest.
acting, then it's harder for people to see
plays lesbian entrepreneur Ally May-
Bono has previously been part of Danc-
you as an actor and take you seriously
fair-Richards. Ally presumes that Long-
ing with the Stars,and also had a stint
as one'.' As for whether he wants to be
street's politics are the same as hers in
as a singer and performer, as well as
a standard bearer for trans actors, Bono
the small-town Michigan market where
authoring several books. In 2011 the
says, "I just am living in the world. I have
she encounters him late at night after
documentary, Becoming Chaz,offered
lots of LGBTfriends and colleagues, I'm
the 2016 election. But then he pulls
a brave and brutally frank look at every
very comfortable with a diverse peer
out a red MAGA cap and everything
aspect of his transition, which he an-
group. I wouldn't want to narrow that
shifts-for Ally and for the viewer. Theirl
nounced in 2010. Bono had previously
group to exclude anyone:' He seems
exchange is emblematic of what hap-
come out publicly as a lesbian in 1995
satisfied with his personal life as well.
pened on election night 2016 when half
and had been a long-time LGBTactivist.
"I'm in a heterosexual relationship;' with
of America realized that their neighbors
But acting is where he first experi-
"the first girl I ever kissed. We kind of
enced comfort in his own skin. "I start-
went our different ways. Then we met
ed acting when I was 14;' he explains.
back up. It feels good:'
were not who they thought they were.
There's a brutal dichotomy in a transman who's spent most of his adult life
"My senior year I was cast as a male
What's next for Chaz Bono? "I'm a
fighting for LGBT civil rights playing
character. I felt so good on stage'.' Bono
character actor. I'm waiting for my next
a Trump supporter. Bono says the ex-
says the experience in 1987 "highlight-
gig. So hopefully something will be
perience has been as challenging as it
ed how much I wasn't comfortable with
coming around soon'.'
FEB/MAR
I
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LIVING
Spring
Open yourself to our exclusive perspective
on lush lesbian living, including interior
and outdoor design, plus a focus on health,
fitness and renewal.
TRUE
Summer
Allow yourself to be inspired by leading
queer women. Hear the voices of modern
female executives, artists, activists, and
the celebrities who engage us.
4 timesayear
curvemag.com
Fall
Embrace a more expansive view of
beauty. From androgynous fashion to
diverse body image, distinctive looks to
dress a beauty and a butch.
Winter
Get cozy with inspiring and beautifully
photographed food, drink and travel
stories, appearing alongside seasonal
recipes and holiday ideas.
FOOD
I REVOLUTION
40
CURVE
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FEB/MAR
FOOD
I REVOLUTION
Oakland
Spice
Chef Preeti Mistry combines Indian heritage and activism.
MerrynJohns
0
akland has been experiencing a queer culinary boom for
some time, and one of the brightest stars on the scene is
chef and restaurateur Preeti Mistry of Navi Kitchen, an Indi-
an-inspired pizza cafe, and Juhu Beach Club, a homey-yet-hip bistro
specializing in Indian street food. Oakland is a beacon for artists and
activists, and the birthplace of the revolutionary socialist Black Pan-
ther Party. "It's always attracted people who are living their lives the
way that want to and not the way that other people prescribe;' says
Mistry. "I love my chosen family here, I love the community. Queer
women of color have lived here for decades, way before it was cool.
FEB/MAR
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CURVE 41
FOOD
I REVOLUTION
There's a local pride that comes from
up restaurant. As part of the Indian
ranchers-you're
a 'yes we can' place as opposed to a
diaspora (she was born in London
She's also critical of the lack of diver-
'yeah we are' place!'
to Indian parents and raised in Ohio),
sity in fine dining. "Just because your
family gatherings and social occa-
dishwasher's Mexican doesn't mean
sions were prioritized.
you have diversity. Who's at the top?
Mistry is a hard-working DIV chef;
while we talk she receives mail, takes
deliveries, and makes batches of
Mistry's restaurants and her book
not the only one!'
Who has the power?"
spicy popcorn. She plans to even-
are personal and political. "Cooking
Cultural appropriation is a hot topic
tually close Juhu to focus on Navi
the cuisine of my cultural heritage
these days, in everything from acting,
Kitchen but intends Juhu to live on
is fucking personal;' she tells me.
to fashion, to food. "If you're a white
in different forms in the future. The
"When there's Yelpers and haters out
guy cooking Vietnamese cuisine, no
lovely,colorful and politically inspiring
there want to dismiss it as 'Asian-fu-
one's telling you you can't use ga-
TheJuhu Beach Club Cookbookis one
sion: it feels like they're missing so
langal. Just have some respect and
such incarnation With the tagline "In-
much. If you didn't grow up as an
awareness of what you're doing and
dian Spice, Oakland Soul" and blurbed
immigrant in this country, there is a
be prepared to talk about it." There's a
by food guru Anthony Bourdain, it's a
certain tendency of reductionism!'
disconnect, she says, that has to do
worthy addition to your queer kitchen.
But Mistry has many fans, especial-
with profit. Whereas she's cooking
Mistry and her wife Ann Nadeau
ly other second generation immi-
her mom's recipes, and has a gen-
have been together for 18 years, and
grants who understand the colonial
uine emotional and cultural connect
as a couple as well as business part-
legacy, whether Indian, Caribbean,
to that labor. But she's not above get-
ners, they have a high profile role in
British or Australian. Juhu redefines
ting back at the appropriators.
their intersectional community. They
Indian-American identity and cui-
"The ongoing joke at Navi Kitch-
see their restaurants as local hubs,
sine. "I feel really proud that I made
en is 'colonize the colonizers'!' And
with friends dropping in to visit or
an impact, that people can see that
the cocktails in The Juhu Beach Club
asking for advice. "Everyone comes
it's more than saag paneer, naan
Cookbookwink at the whiteness of
in and chats with you about whatev-
and chicken tikka masala-not that I
cocktails. Sex on Juhu Beach is an
er's going on in the community. We
don't love those things. There's just
improvement of a trashy classic add-
employ a lot of artists, activists and
so much more!'
ing chai masala and mango. "We all
young people who look to me and
Mistry has been outspoken about
globally appropriate from each other.
Ann when something is going on in
elitist celebrity chefs appropriating
It would be terrible if we were all liv-
our world. I've always been involved
ethnic cuisine to spice up Europe-
ing in our silos. The difficulty comes
in a certain amount of social justice.
an tradition. "We're all one industry;
in with inappropriate appropriation-
I didn't decide to become a chef be-
whether you have a food truck or a
when people with privileged back-
cause I wanted to be on TV and get
three Michelin-starred restaurant. It's
grounds profit from a culture that
Michelin stars or a James Beard
cooking, plain and simple. It's infuri-
doesn't have that level of privilege
Award. I went to culinary school be-
ating to me how there's a segment
and power!'
cause I liked cooking and I liked the
of the industry that thinks they're the
way it brought people together!' Mis-
only ones that matter." Mistry has de-
book and grab a copy of The Juhu
try first learned the importance of
scribed fine dining as 'disingenuous'.
BeachClubCookbook.Then get cook-
community when she was in her 20s
"To think that you can serve the one
ing-creatively and consciously.
and living in San Francisco where she
percent, yet feel good about yourself
hosted dinner parties and ran a pop-
because you support farmers and
42
CURVE
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FEB/MAR
So take a leaf out of Oakland's
juhubeachclub.com
FOOD
I REVOLUTION
Ginger
Chile
Dungeness
Crab
PreetiMistry
Dungeness crab season is a big deal in the Bay Area. It usually
starts right before Thanksgiving and runs until March. The crab
is a popular dish on holiday tables-and
its limited availability
only makes it more special. In my opinion, Dungeness crab rivals
New England lobster in terms of taste, texture, and sheer size.
A shout-out to my absolute favorite seafood restaurant in Mumbai-Mahesh Lunch Home, where I always order the fresh crabfor seed-planting status on this recipe.
INGREDIENTS:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Melt the butter in a large cas-
G
0
G
G
0
G
pound unsalted butter
serole on medium heat. Add the curry leaves, ginger, and
cup fresh curry leaves
garlic. The curry leaves will crisp, and the ginger and gar-
cup ginger, minced
teaspoon Indian red chili powder
pieces: snap off the legs and quarter the body using a
cleaned (substitute other crab or
lobster if unavailable)
CURVE
the chili powder and wine. Let the wine simmer for about
5 minutes, until the alcohol burns off. Break the crab into
Dungeness crabs, cooked and
0
0
G
lic will begin to brown-after about 5 minutes. Then add
cup garlic, minced
cup dry white wine
e
44
METHOD:
large chef knife. Add the crab to the butter mixture, season with salt, and toss the crab to coat all the pieces.
Place the casserole in the oven for about 15 minutes;
halfway through cooking, remove it from the oven and
stir to mix the sauce with the crab. Garnish with lemon
and cilantro. Serve with crusty bread. Serves 2 to 4
tablespoon salt
lemon, cut in wedges
bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
I
FEB/MAR
Reprintedwith permission from TheJuhu BeachClubCookbook
© 2077 by Preeti Mistry with SarahHenry,RunningPress
CULTURE I TRIP
TheMother
of
AllFestivals
Reporting back from the
third year of MOTHERSHIP.
ChloeCurran
Do you like lesbians and thirst for intersectional
enlightenment? How about camping and live music?
Workshops and a fully stocked bar? MOTHERSHIP,in
the Indio Valley, is the festival for you. Founded by Los
Angeles-based therapist Laura Wise three years ago,
MOTHERSHIP has seen remarkable growth, and this
year attracted over 400 attendees from the United
States and Canada.
MOTHERSHIP took place in a picturesque private
campground at the base of the Indio Mountains, October 13-15. The large property provided ample space
for tent and RV camping. Alongside our makeshift
women's village was a circular center with activities,
food and drink tents, and a small stage for nighttime
FEB/MAR
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CULTURE I TRIP
musical performances. The effect was open and wel-
around topless, happily relaxing sans underwire in the
coming. "Everyone was so happy to be there, the ex-
fierce California sun. Sexual harassment isn't an is-
citement was contagious;' said Cailin, 30, a volunteer
sue. All bathrooms are open to everyone. Sisterhood
from L.A.
and solidarity are the terms of the day.
At night, the lights of the festival twinkled merrily
The programming is chock-full of workshops, which
beneath a perfectly starry night, as excited women
encompass everything from the inspirational, to the
passed to and from the bar and the dance floor, the
kinky, to the nostalgic. Where else will you find BDSM
music boomed just loudly enough, and the feeling of
tutorials side-by-side with Girl Scout Camp fare such
warm possibility seemed to dissolve the reticence
as crafts and chess? Day 1 kicked off at noon on Fri-
of even the shiest participants. This easy joy and
day, October 13, with "Biggie Smalls the lllest Femi-
welcoming spirit is MOTHERSHIP's greatest accom-
nist;' a presentation about the late rapper's feminist
plishment. "That's something I love about the event, it
proclivities. It was followed, at one-hour intervals, by
a "Solo Traveler Meet Up" ice-breaker and a diverse
panel discussion on a "Feminist Call to Action." At 3
Take
whatyouwant
fromMOTHERS
HIP.
From
seeking
inner
truthtojustchecking
outacoolscene.
p.m., attendees could choose between the sexy "How
to Drive a Vulva" and the G-rated "Chess for Beginners
and Queens."
Then, at 4 p.m., the "Women with Super Powers"
panel featured women in the arts discussing the in-
tersection of art and healing. At 5 p.m., the final three
workshops provided attendees with the opportunity
to either sit or stand. At 'The Intersection of Feminism & Tech" panelists explained how technology
can be harnessed for feminism and activism. "Bold
Alchemy Self-Defense Class" provided a fun tutorial
in self-protection. "Craft Time with Mama Jill" was a
chill adult craft session heavy on hugs and chatting.
As the sun started to set, attendees grabbed dinner
from the food trucks and drinks from the bar, or made
their own refreshments in their tents and RVs. Many
campers set up drink tables and mini-grills, creating a
brings new people together who would otherwise never meet. I have already begun to see collaborations
that arose from the event, and that's what it's aboutconnection and support amongst women;' said Wise.
MOTHERSHIP is open to all female, female-identified, and non-binary people with a couple hundred
bucks and a yen to explore their inner empowerment.
Or BDSM. Or queer politics. Or just drink to a cause
(The Tegan and Sara Foundation) in the desert with a
bunch of mostly queer women. You can take what you
want from MOTHERSHIP-from seeking inner truth to
just checking out a cool scene. While 65 percent of attendees identify as LGBTQ,MOTHERSHIP is open to
all. The nice thing about removing men from the mix
is the sense of relaxation that follows. MOTHERSHIP
is body friendly, and several attendees chose to walk
46 CURVE
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merry tailgate village. The evening programming featured an impressive lineup of DJs and live performers,
including L.A. club kids Bounce House and Goodboy,
the internet-famous Madame Gandhi, and the lnstagram-famous Madison Paige. For those looking to
get weird and/or decorated, the Creativity tent offered
costumes, body and face paint, and henna. After a
long day of structured, often intellectual activities, everyone enjoyed a chance to relax, mingle, and do their
own thing. Women danced freely in the crisp evening,
wearing everything from evening outfits to skimpy
Burning Man rave ensembles. People of every race
and body type let down their guard, smiling and greeting anyone who passed, and striking up conversations with strangers in this rare, queer-centric, women-only bonding experience. Everyone enjoyed the
CULTURE I TRIP
QJ
N
c:::
(/)
ro
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FEB/MAR
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CULTURE I TRIP
atmosphere, partying enthusiastically until the music
Let's talk about the Masturbation tent. I was intrigued
stopped at 1 a.m., when the guests went to sleep or
by the name. While I was waiting in a long line for na-
continued their fun in smaller, secluded knots.
chos at the Mexican food truck, a woman approached
The funny thing about camping is that you're ready
the line and announced: "There are women in the Mas-
to wake up early. The sun beats through your tent,
turbation tent, if any of you want to join:' My inner cu-
and the rustling of an awakening community, the low
riosity battled with my hunger. From a quick glance
murmur of voices, and a growling stomach make ris-
around, I saw that the other women in line were facing a
ing shortly after dawn both inevitable and unusually
similar dilemma. Food or fucking? We all elected food.
enjoyable. After standing in line for smoothies and
A middle-aged woman behind me in flowing robes and
muffins, and using the small but spacious bathroom
an ornate crown took the silence as an opportunity to
facilities (standing bathroom toilets in addition to the
tell us about herself. "I'm straight and married, but I felt
inevitable festival porta potties), women filtered into
a calling to come here;' she told me earnestly. "I always
their selected activities.
heed the call of the universe. It speaks to me."
Saturday's programming began with "Inner Empow-
Finally, at 4 p.m. on Day 2 came the headliners we
erment Yoga and Meditation" at 8 a.m. to cleanse the
were all waiting for. Tegan and Sara, our lesbians dei-
mind and stretch the body. At 9 a.m., there was either
ties, graced us with their divine presence for the aptly
"Microdosing with a Marijuana Goddess;' a holistic tu-
named panel "In Conversation with Tegan and Sara:'
torial on treating anxiety and health issues with tiny
They spoke to enthusiastic attendees about their new
amounts of weed, or "Breathwork Workshop;' which
nonprofit, The Tegan and Sara Foundation, and encour-
promised an "indescribable release" through that hum-
aged us all to make music, find power, etc. Followed by
ble bodily function called breathing. There's a serious
a "Women's Sexuality in Media" panel and "Hand Drum-
strain of natural health care ideology running through
ming for Beginners;' the final full day of MOTHERSHIP
much of MOTHERSHIP'sprogramming.
wound down.
Aspiring lesbian mothers enjoyed the 10 a.m. "Birth
The evening festivities were warm and relaxed. Aeri-
Justice and Empowerment" workshop. At 11 a.m., at-
al performers gracefully weaved around a beribboned
tendees chose between "Somatic Shamanic Practices
maypole as the music began. DJ Little Indian spun retro
for Healing Women;' a workshop on spiritual healing,
tunes, followed by the queer pop-punk outfit WASI,then
especially after trauma, and "Female Travel Warrior,' a
DJ FAAROW,DJ Dirty Rich Kid, and finally the spectacu-
conversation on the realities of traveling solo and fe-
larly talented singers of Halle. Everyone made the most
male, and an additional opportunity for solo travelers
of their last night at MOTHERSHIP As I watched, two
to connect. While many attendees came with friends,
gorgeous girls in skimpy cowgirl outfits and glittery
a sizable portion came alone, and MOTHERSHIPplan-
body paint spanked each other and made out behind
ners made a point of helping lone travelers feel wel-
the bar. No one seemed particularly drunk; it felt very
come and connected.
much like the last day of feminist hippie summer camp.
The opportunity to blow off all that boho workshop-
MOTHERSHIP is a hybrid of queer campout, fem-
ping and just focus on partying with a bunch of queers
inist conference, and festival. "I think we are onto
in the woods is a comforting aspect of MOTHERSHIP
something and I look forward to seeing how it all
For the lesbian who wants to hang around with other
unfolds;' Wise explains earnestly. "In this era of
lesbians in a cool setting but doesn't yearn to find her
pop-feminism, I want to move into this space before
inner spirit warrior, MOTHERSHIPis still a good time.
someone else does. I will never be able to execute it
"Babes Building Brands" was followed by a "Lioness"
all perfectly, especially without a huge team behind
workshop. Sponsored by the Lioness line of vibrators,
me or a corporation, but I genuinely care about cre-
which track your orgasm patterns, this workshop ed-
ating safe spaces for women and the progression of
ucated women on their orgasms. The presenters had
feminism." MOTHERSHIP is about female connection.
a tent with little charts of orgasm patterns and even
That's something.
offered attendees a test go at the vibrator in their "Masturbation" tent.
48 CURVE
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mothershipfest.com
FEB/MAR
IN THE CROSSFIRE
50 CURVE
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IN THE CROSSFIRE
IsThere
Room
in
#MeToo
forLesbians?
Queer women get sexually harassed and assaulted too.
VictoriaA. Brownworth
I
t seems unnecessary to state that
Times reported that the rumors were
nowhere in the #MeToo lexicon
in fact true: On the record, six wom-
does the word "lesbian" appear.
en, five named, one unnamed, had
Yet lesbian actor and comedian Tig
accused C.K. of sexual harassment,
Notaro has alluded to having been a
intimidation, and assault. The day
victim of such harassment. Notaro
after the news broke, C.K. acknowl-
severed all ties with the comedian
edged that the Times story was true
Louis C.K., who had been a producer
and issued an apology. Mere days
on her series OneMississippi, in Sep-
later, the FX network fired C.K. and re-
tember 2016, after what was referred
moved his name from all four shows
to as "an incident:'
he was associated with.
In August 2017, Notaro spoke to
In early December, Notaro was
The Daily Beast and Time magazine
asked about C.K. She said, 'The posi-
about the longstanding rumors that
tive is, the victims aren't told they are
Louis C.K. had sexually harassed and
lying anymore!' Every week, we hear
assaulted women comedians. Nota-
new revelations about the assault
ro was quoted as saying, "I think it's
and sexual harassment of women by
important to take care of that, to han-
high-placed men in entertainment,
dle that, because it's serious to be as-
politics, and journalism.
saulted. It's serious to be harassed.
Yet in all the revelations, the wom-
It's serious, it's serious, it's serious."
en we never heard from were lesbi-
The
urgency
in
Notaro's tone
ans. Were we expected to believe
should have been taken as a warn-
that there were no lesbians in any of
ing to more offenders than just Louis
these professions, at any level, and
C.K. In November 2017, the New York
that no lesbians had ever been sexu-
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 51
IN THE CROSSFIRE
ally harassed or assaulted?
whatever I was wearing by men who
Too much about actresses and not
Or is the reason that we haven't
had power over what assignments I
enough about hotel housekeepers."
heard from lesbians on this issue
was given, or not given, that I'm not
And, I would add, too much about
far more insidious? Is it that lesbi-
even sure from the vantage point
heterosexual women, not enough
ans don't dare reveal they are being
of three decades how much that
about lesbians. Some lesbians are
sexually abused or assaulted on the
abuse impacted my work. I know I
at the intersection of homophobic
job because they fear losing those
was always stressed. I know one of
discrimination and sexual harass-
jobs? Discrimination against lesbi-
my butch-presenting lesbian friends
mentbecause of the work they do.
ans on the job-any job-is rampant.
who worked at a sister newspaper
I spoke with several lesbians who
And under the Trump administration,
had a nervous breakdown and had to
work in construction. All have faced
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has
change jobs. When women talk now
serious sexual harassment, discrim-
stipulated that lesbians are not cov-
about how many of their employers
ination, and abuse. None has dared
ered by Title IX protections against
and editors exposed themselves or
to come forward, because each is the
such discrimination. Two cases of
forced them to have sex, it doesn't
only woman on her crew and each
women who were fired from their
surprise me in the least.
positions for being lesbians, Jameka
The intersection of anti-lesbian dis-
has heard throughout her tenure
that women just can't do this kind of
Evans, a hospital worker in Georgia,
crimination and sexual harassment
and Kimberly Hively, an adjunct pro-
and assault at work is the most ob-
In a recent study published in the
fessor in Indiana, are scheduled to
vious of Venn diagrams. As long as
journal Gender,Workand Organization,
be heard on appeal in 2018. Lambda
lesbians have no legal protections,
fully 88 percent of women working in
Legal is hoping to take their cases all
lesbians are always in any job on
construction reported having been
the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
sufferance. Lesbians can be fired at
sexually harassed and/or assaulted
The Me Too movement has trig-
any time, for no reason, with little to
on the job. Women working in restau-
gered memories for many of us
no recourse. In the cases brought by
rants (who among us hasn't worked
about our own experiences with sex-
Evans and Hively, lower courts found
at least temporarily as a server or
ual abuse and assault at work. As a
a direct correlation between their
in a kitchen?) and hospitals (like Ev-
20-something reporter, I faced daily
lesbianism and discrimination under
ans) faced more discrimination than
harassment from male co-workers. It
Title IX provisions, noting that they
most, due to the gendered nature
was the 1980s though, and Anita Hill
were being discriminated against
of the work. When the majority of
had yet to make her imprint on the
on the basis of sex because if they
lower-level staff are female and the
Zeitgeist with her bravely stated al-
hadn't been lesbians, they wouldn't
upper-level staff are male, the likeli-
legations against Clarence Thomas.
have been harassed. Both women
hood of harassment and abuse was
suffered sexual harassment at work
highest.
In many of the newsrooms where I
have worked over the past 30 years,
for
being gender-non-conforming,
I have been the only woman report-
butch-presenting lesbians.
work.
Women of color are most likely to
be working as staff in hotels, which
er. In the '80s and '90s, I was made
Journalist Barbara Ehrenreich told
is one of the most dangerously iso-
so aware of my femaleness, my
the Washington Post in November,
lating jobs for women. More than 90
blondeness, my perceived femme-
"Our current sex harassment dis-
percent of the women who cleaned
ness, the size of my breasts, and
cussion is woefully class-skewed.
rooms asserted that they had been
52 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
IN THE CROSSFIRE
sexually harassed and/or assaulted
Baldwin said, "Workplace harass-
by guests. Of the lesbians I spoke
ment remains an unacceptable reality
with who did this work in Las Vegas
that threatens the safety and econom-
Even if women are expected to ac-
and New York City, everyone had
ic security of far too many [women]
cept sexual abuse and/or assault as
had a guest expose himself to her,
working to build a better future for
part of their job description, many
grab her, and/or sexually assault
themselves and their families:'
women will find it difficult to get
into higher-paying jobs:'
These points by Baldwin are key
her in some way. None felt able to
In a statement on her website, Bald-
ahead in industries where men hold
go to management to report these
win noted that in 2016, "sex discrim-
all the power. As one lesbian artist
assaults, which, I was told, are per-
ination comprised over 30 percent
who worked as a graphic designer
ceived as just "part of the job." Men
of the charges filed with the Equal
for a small Philadelphia firm told me,
tipping housekeepers for service of-
Employment Opportunity Commis-
"My day starts with my shoulders being rubbed. If I'm lucky, that's where
ten thought that tip paid for touching
the women workers.
If lesbians complain about a hostile work environment, they can find
themselves perceived as the problem, not the person or persons who
perpetrated the abuse. Both Evans
and Hively were accused of having
a bad attitude when they filed grievances. This mirrors what actresses
and journalists have been told about
their reports of sexual abuse. The
Lesbians
canbe
firedatanytime,
fornoreason,
withlittletono
recourse.
it ends. But I have to log a certain
amount of time here before I can
move to the next job or my resume
looks like I'm the problem-like I can't
hold a job for more than a short time:'
A bartender in a boutique hotel asserted that there was always a "see
if you can touch the lesbian" aspect
to her job. "They know I'm gay, so it's
a game, a test to them. If they can
touch me, then maybe I'm not really gay and they can go further. It's a
difference is that the women in working-class or mid-level jobs are also at
sion (EEOC) under all the statutes
constant threat, and you're just sup-
a distinct economic disadvantage.
the agency enforces, with women
posed to act like it's a joke. But you
Losing your $8 an hour job, and hav-
filing more than 83 percent of all
never know how far they will try to
ing to find another one with only your
sexual harassment charges. Stud-
take it."
bad reference in hand, can be devas-
ies have shown that sexual harass-
The Me Too movement isn't dis-
tating and life-altering, and can even
ment of women, including unwanted
sipating any time soon. The lid
result in homelessness.
touching, grabbing, and stalking, is
has been torn off that Pandora's
Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), the
common in industries with low-wage
box. Women will continue to come
first openly gay person elected to
jobs, like restaurants and hospitality,
forward, men will continue to be
Congress, is attempting to address
as well as in male-dominated indus-
revealed as serial abusers. The
this class and gender divide. In Oc-
tries such as construction, public
question is, when will women who
tober 2017, Baldwin introduced the
safety, manufacturing, farming, and
aren't in high-profile jobs have their
Fair Employment Protection Act,
the high-tech industry. Harassment
concerns addressed? And when, if
co-signed with Representative Rosa
in male-dominated industries oper-
ever,will the experiences of lesbians
DeLauro(D-CT-3).
ates as a barrier to women's entry
be heard?
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 53
T R U E
Summer
Allow yourself to be inspired by leading
queer women. Hear the voices of modern
female executives, artists, activists, and
the celebrities who engage us.
MUST READ
Revolutionary,
Gifted
andBlack
Meet one of the queer founders of Black
Lives Matter, Patrisse Khan-Cullors.
AgundaOkeyo
It stands to reason that when Patrisse KhanCullors, a founder of Black Lives Matter, sat down
with her co-author, asha bandele, to write a memoir
of this burgeoning nonviolent movement, the subject of who gets to label whom would inspire their
title, When They Call You a Terrorist: a Black Lives
Matter Memoir. The love-drenched narrative style
of this powerful memoir charts the course of KhanCullors's life, growing up in Los Angeles; hers is a
narrative pierced personally by headline issues that
are often glossed over, even in liberal circles, issues
like structural poverty, the war on drugs, the war
on gangs, mass incarceration, unequal education,
and police brutality. Although Khan-Cullers, a queer
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 55
MUST READ
:.
Patrisse Khan-Cullars
56
CURVE
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FEB/MAR
MUST READ
woman and the recent recIpIent of
In the summer of 2016, Black Lives
the Sydney Peace Prize, is certainly a
Matter
victorious example of how to survive
(and have since been exonerated) for
racism, classism, sexism, and heter-
inciting violence, while conservative
onormativity
in America, she knows
(SLM) activists
were sued
networks like Fox News labeled them
all too well that many others did not
a terrorist
or are still fighting to get free. The
of 2017, the FBI released a warning
organization.
memoir is a compelling series of sto-
about what they termed "black sep-
ries that sketch out the life of a black
aratist
girl child who becomes a woman,
citing SLM but stoking the fires of
told in her own words, using her own
anti-black racism, no doubt stirred up
life to illustrate what it means to be
by the Trump administration.
black, poor, and socially conscious
I asked Khan-Cullers why she and
extremists;'
In the fall
not specifically
When
in the 1980s, '90s, and 2000s, while
asha bandele chose When They Call
working on building the community
You a Terrorist as their title, she said,
and safety that most people long for.
"Growing up in Los Angeles in a working-class suburb, in the middle of the
war on gangs and the war on drugs,
really shaped what I understood and
what would eventually be called Black
Lives Matter." She goes on to say how
surreal, confusing, and disturbing it
was to have SLM labeled "terrorist;'
though, she says, "I was clear; this
label 'terrorist' is similar to the label
that activists
and organizers were
given in the '60s and '70s as 'communists; so I understood this was part of
a historical legacy in which this country deems black people, in particular
when we fight for our rights and survival, as criminal."
But before we further discuss SLM
as an international movement founded by three women, Khan-Cullers,
Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi, we
should take a moment here to recognize that two of the three women
are queer, Khan-Cullers and Garza.
Also, we should recognize that it has
often been women, the mothers, sisters, and wives of slain boys and men
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 57
MUST READ
such as Emmett Till and Trayvon Mar-
liced culture of Los Angeles, both in
tin, who have taken up the charge to
and out of school; the fact that from
fight injustice. As Khan-Cullers tells
early adolescence, black girls begin to
me, "Black women have always been
experience harassment by police and
the architects of societies and move-
school
ments. To try to marginalize us in this
found that nationally black girls were
officials.
Crenshaw's study
movement is wrong and it's a myth.
suspended six times more than white
We can look at people like Fannie
girls, while black boys were suspend-
Lou Hamer and Ella Baker, who didn't
ed three times as often as white boys.
receive the praise or the recognition
Furthermore, in urban centers such as
they deserved because they were of-
New York City and Boston, the relative
ten competing with their male coun-
risk for disciplinary
terpoints. [But] they in fact shaped
black girls relative to white girls was
the very debate this country was hav-
10 and 11 times more, respectively.
ing around building black power, the
In both cities black boys where six
Democratic Party, and how we look
and eight times more likely to receive
action against
at black, poor southern voters ...We
disciplinary action in schools, respec-
three women are the visible leaders
tively. The fact of the matter is that
of this movement [because] we have
black girls are extremely vulnerable to
a better understanding of what has
punitive treatment in schools and we
happened in history and how black
don't talk about it.
women have been erased in history.
In a chapter called "Twelve;' Khan-
History gets told differently when we
Cullors recounts that "the first time
I was arrested, I am twelve years
are not visible."
In 2015, Kimberle Crenshaw, a law
old." A bright child, she didn't attend
professor at Columbia and Stanford,
school
coined the hashtag #SayHerName to
munity, but commuted to a middle
in her working-class
com-
commemorate black women killed by
school "where the gifted kids go." But
police, beginning with Sandra Bland,
because she had low math and sci-
who was stopped for a traffic viola-
ence grades one year, she had to go
tion that year and was found dead in
to summer school, which was taught
her Texas jail cell three days later. A
at her neighborhood middle school.
chapter of the Khan-Cullors's book is
While at the local school, she forgot
dedicated to this issue and to Sandra
herself and behaved like her peers at
Bland's life. However, before #Say-
her gifted school, who smoke weed in
HerName, Crenshaw released a star-
the bathroom before class and walk
tling study of black girls in schools,
about freely, with no police presence
entitled Black Girls Matter: Pushed Out,
to speak of. One day during summer
Overpoliced, and Underprotected. The
school, Khan-Cullers smoked a joint
December 2014 study revealed a truth
in the bathroom. Someone must have
that Khan-Cullers had personally ex-
said something, because two days
perienced as a child in the heavily po-
later a police officer came into her
58
CURVE
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FEB/MAR
------------------------------------
MUST READ
"Black
women
havebeenerased
inhistory.
History
getstold
differently
when
wearenot
visible."
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 59
MUST READ
class, handcuffed her in the front of
za's Facebook page, and along with
the room, and took her to the dean.
two friends launch a movement. She
Would this public shaming have hap-
spends considerable
pened in her gifted school, with fewer
ing the early moments of Black Lives
black and brown faces in the class-
Matter which I imagine will inspire the
room and more parents in a higher tax
next generation
bracket? Probably not.
It's fair to say that the very detailed,
Khan-Cullors also recounts how her
time discuss-
of revolutionaries.
emotional, and nuanced stories that
older brothers Paul and Monte began
Khan-Cullors tells of her family, and
getting violently stopped and frisked
her chosen family, offer a harrowing
by local police at ages 13 and 11, re-
and deeply humanizing picture of an-
spectively. She writes, "There are no
ti-black state-sanctioned
green spaces, no community centers
America.
violence in
to shoot hoops in, no playgrounds
Along with her co-author, asha ban-
with handball courts, no parks for
dele, Patrisse Khan-Cullars, now the
children to build castles in, so they
mother of a black son and a partner
make the alleyway their secret place ...
in a healthy queer relationship, seeks
It's from behind [a] gate that I watch
the police roll up on my brothers and
to send us a message. When They
Call You a Terrorist: a Black Lives Mat-
their friends, not one of whom is over
ter Memoir oddly reminds me of the
the age of 14. I cannot cry and I can-
feeling I had when I first watched The
not scream and I cannot breathe."
Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls
In many ways, When They Call You a
in Love. Certainly, the memoir and the
Terrorist is an insider's view, through
movie are wildly different in tone, but
the lives of a love-rich and cash-poor
as narratives of queer life in America
family, of the school-to-prison
pipe-
there is a similar kind of magic. I say
line, police brutality, and economic
this with the utmost respect for the
inequality.
heart-wrenching trials and triumphs
The lack of human dignity that
of Khan-Cullors's life, but her narrative
Khan-Cullors witnesses in the treat-
of growing up queer and black, and
ment of her brother Monte, a young
becoming a woman and a revolution-
man thrust into the criminal justice
ary is a gift for those who remember
system and brutalized for his mental
the wonders of growing up, despite it
illness, the trials of her pious mother,
all: the love of family, the excitement
and the pragmatism of her brother
of first loves, the courage of walking
Paul, who is a man before he's a boy,
your own path, and the satisfaction
sparks her activism. Having graduat-
of building your own community or
ed from an arts and social justice high
chosen family. Perhaps I'm caught
school, it is while she was paying her
in the foggy memory of that film,
way through college that Khan-Cullors
but I'll never forget how it made me
begins to show signs of becoming
feel, and this memoir had a very sim-
the woman who would one day type
ilar though profoundly deeper effect.
#BlacklivesMatter
A feeling of love.
60
CURVE
I
on
FEB/MAR
Alicia
Gar-
LI V I NG
Fall
Embrace a more expansive view of
beauty. From androgynous fashion to
diverse body image, distinctive looks to
dress a beauty and a butch.
IMAGE MAKERS
Women
oftheWorld
International photographer
Mihaela N oroc captures
the beauty of diversity.
ISTANBUL,TURKEY·
"Thiswoman was in an LGBTPrideparade.In a country that
becomesmore and more conservative,the LGBTcommunity here faces a lot of
challengesbut these braveand courageouspeopleare standing up for their rights."
62 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
IMAGE MAKERS
HowdidTheAtlasofBeautybegin?
real beauty means being yourself. There's
In 2013, a trip to Ethiopia changed my
a lot of pressure on women to look a cer-
perspective. Right away, I was fascinated
tain way, so sometimes it's a struggle to
by the women I saw during that vacation.
be yourself, to make yourself accepted as
Some were living in tribes, where nudity
you are. But I hope this project will encour-
was normal. Others were part of conser-
age more women, and also men, to follow
vative communities, covering their heads.
their own path, to explore their own beau-
And still others, in the big cities, were em-
ty, without feeling constrained.
bracing modern life. Most of them were
struggling and working hard, sometimes
facing discrimination as women. But in
Whydoyouphotograph
onlywomen?
When I started in photography 16 years
these harsh environments, they were
ago, my first subjects were my mother
shining like stars-with
dignity, strength,
and my sister. Over the years I tried differ-
and beauty. If there's so much diversity
ent types of photography, but in the end I
and so many stories in just one country,
realized that as an artist I have to focus
what about the rest of the world? I realized
on a niche, to explore it, to understand it,
that the wonderful women of our planet
to develop my skills around it. And this
deserve much more attention, and that
niche for me was photographing women,
true beauty is usually unnoticed. In that
because this was the thing that made me
moment, I started to dream, and found the
curious, that, indirectly, made me discov-
strength to break from my comfort zone,
er myself, as a woman. There's so much
quit my day job, and start this project.
pressure on women to look a certain way,
Whatis"beauty"
foryou?
everywhere in the world, and there's also
so much discrimination against them, and
For me, "beauty" is "diversity." It is much
I realized that an honest project about
more than what we often see today in
women of the world, about their struggles
mass media. If you put the words "beauti-
and dreams, is really necessary today.
ful woman" into Google, you'll mostly see
very similar images of seductive women.
But on the streets of the world, beauty has
Whatisyouraimwiththisbook?
I want to honor the wonderful women of
many more facets. We just have to open
our world. To show that their beauty has
our eyes and see it. In the end, beauty is in
no bounds, so acceptance, love, and com-
our differences, it's about being yourself,
passion shouldn't either. I hope this book
natural and authentic, not about trends,
will get into many homes around the world,
race, or social status.
Whatmakesa womanbeautiful?
All women are beautiful in their own
convincing more people that diversity is a
treasure and not a trigger for conflicts and
hate. We are very different but at the same
time we are all part of the same family.
way. In The Atlas of Beauty, women don't
play roles, they are not perfect. But they
are natural and authentic, proving that
TheAtlas of Beautyis on Amazon.com
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 63
IMAGE MAKERS
SALVADOR
DEBAHIA,BRAZIL:"Rafaelaand Obaxtold me about how difficult it is
sometimes to be both black and lesbian.But their relationshipseemedstronger
than the prejudicethey face."
64 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
IMAGE MAKERS
PARIS,FRANCE:"/ met Lucilleand Amelie during an LGBTprotest. Theyboth felt
that the intoleranceagainst sexualminorities is growingyear by year in their city"
FEB/MAR
I CURVE 65
s:
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G)
°'
°'
n
C
m
"'T'1
m
OJ
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s::
)>
;;:o
Reprinted
with permission
fromAtlasof Beautyby MihaelaNoroc,copyright(c)2017.
Published
byTenSpeedPress,a divisionof PenguinRandomHouse,Inc.Photographs
(c)2017by MihaelaNoroc
m
s:
)>
:,::::
m
:::0
V,
IMAGE MAKERS
MILAN,ITALY:"Giuliahas felt androgynous-male and female-since she
was a child. Now she has this word tattooed on her chest,in Greek."
SALVADOR,
BRAZIL:"Dandarais a transgenderwoman.As an adolescent,she started to understandthat she was very different from the other boys,includingher twin
brother.Although she was born a boy,her total essenceis one of a girl."
FEB/MAR
I CURVE 67
CURVE
LIVING
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CURVE 69
MUSIC
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-"'
u
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70 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
MUSIC I TALKS
Outofthe
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Up close and
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FEB/MAR I CURVE 71
MUSIC
I TALKS
S
and "Don't Go."She then launched a solo career. Chart-top-
cover every day. Initially, it was
ping albums including Alf and Hoodoo ensued. After years of dif-
that as a child I was raised to pull
ficulties with music label Sony over artistic control, Moyet moved
a cart. Someone born to French
to Sanctuary Records, where she experienced a renaissance. Her
peasant sensibilities in an English
album Hometime went gold in the UK. In June 2017, she released
new town, I found myself more ag-
Other to rave reviews. She's always been a fantastic LGBTQally,
gressive and hardier than many of
and ahead of her concert in Melbourne, Australia at the arena
my peers. Later, I was considered
inger-songwriter Alison Moyet first found fame in the 1980s
as half of the electronic duo Vaz, with hits like "Only You"
Howdoyouidentify?
There are more ways that I dis-
named after former tennis star Margaret Court, Moyet publicly de-
a dyke, before I knew what a dyke
nounced Court's homophobia.
was. I was physical and argumentative. I was assumed to be unapproachable and taciturn. I was unable to focus at school or to follow
the path prescribed to us. I was not
a young person many people wanted to live beside.
Whendidyoubegintorealizethat
notfittingincouldbea benefit?
I never didn't want to fit in, I just
accepted it as a natural state. Later, when I could decipher the rules,
I understood how to mimic them.
When I then recognized that many
people were more vulnerable than
me, and without useful brawn, I
found myself more adept at tenderness. I'm as free as I have ever
been. I have never been free, and
so now, no less so, no more. I know
burdens, how to carry them, and
how to build muscle on them. Age
makes you grateful for the pitfalls.
Glad of the separation.
Howdoyoubalancethedesire
tofitinwiththeimperative
to
standout?
72 CURVE
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MUSIC
is true of Other. Guy [Sigsworth's]
ry. The denominations
colors that gift us an easier ride.
sensibilities blend the tracks son-
church and state not conflated. A
That I couldn't spell or punctuate
ically, and my voice and lyrical ap-
woman not dressed for a red car-
reliably, in the '60s, marked me as
proach make of them a connected
pet. When you want to investigate
We have codes, and shapes, and
I spend. A
a child "of no discernible talent."
body of work. Each piece is more
what makes you choose, you need
My mother, for whom grammar
of a short story than a chapter of
to direct your attention
was the one aspect of her life she
a whole.
things that are yours to choose.
could control, viewed it very dimly
deconstruct myself relentlessly. It
You'renow56.Manyolder
womenspeakaboutthe social
invisibility
that agingbrings.In
an interviewwiththe Guardian,
youcitedmiddle-age
female
invisibility
as somethingthat
youfindto bepositive.
is not unusual to me that I want to
I was always remarkable. Even
that past participles and pronouns
needed defining time and again,
and she liked me where others did
not. I didn't opt for Otherness. Most
of us don't. We find it out about
ourselves. Later we celebrate it. I
understand what shapes others. I
as a tot.
I have been hugely
found myself attached to a route
self-conscious and have spent far
that was enviable, eventually. As
too long in my own head. When I
a youth, I wanted very much the
have glimpses of a success of my
norm. Obviously, now I recognize
own grading, a well-written
that the desire to lift yourself else-
or an insightful
where is entirely normal. I never
ed to giggling heights. When I am
needed more. Belligerence took
without these things, I am a peas-
me there, coincidentally.
ant with an open field. Being old
Thealbumworksas a cohesive
wholeandeachtracksworks
independently.
Whatlinksthem?
I think you will find all my work,
in terms of the songs, does that.
Right back to Yazoo. Everything
we did was only a distant
rela-
tion to the next, bar maybe two
or three songs. The voice and the
electronics married them as a collection, but they came from dis-
song
review, I am lift-
to the
Before you can question someone
else's identity, you have to be familiar with your own. I don't want
to mimic. I shut out voices. I don't
know where we are, where any of
us is heading. I have no belief that
our lives are sacrosanct. I see no
emptying of the swamps, just the
bottom feeders stirred up and on
the surface.
Allaroundthe world,women
continueto besilenced.Doyou
seeyourselfas havinga social
responsibility,
as a songwriter
whois alsoa woman?
Not as a songwriter
the responsibility,
do I feel
or even as a
enough to understand that I am
woman with a platform,
never more important than I am ir-
the woman and able matriarch I
relevant, and when dead am dead,
am, regardless. When I feel these
as everything that dies. I like the
slights as keenly as I do and I
endings of all things.
YourmotherwasEnglish,
your
fatherFrench.You've
spoken
beforeaboutnottryingto Americanize.HowdoyouseeBritish
identityshiftingin a post-Brexit,
Trumpian
world?
parate places, and we never tried
It started for me as a simple
to find a theme. For me, the same
thing. My own accent. My histo-
but as
see my daughters still having to
face the same privations,
and
indeed women of the world [experience]
far
more
oppression
than anything I have known, it is
not even a consideration
I need
to weigh. Yes. I join my voice to
the argument as vividly as I can.
alisonmoyet.com
FEB/MAR I CURVE 73
I
TALKS
POPCORN
WhyWeLove
Wynonna
Earp
Tune in and catch the stars at ClexaCon 2018.
LisaTedesco
74 CURVE
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POPCORN
S
ince its debut back in April
heir to the Earp curse, and town
without the fear of the "Bury Your
2016, Wynonna Earp has
outcast from her troubled past. So
Gays" trope that has plagued ca-
proven itself to be an ally
this show already wins because,
ble television for decades now.
to the LGBTQ community, uniting
female fandoms across the globe.
A lot of these television
hello, chick with a big ass gun!
pro-
In the beginning Wynonna is
grams entice LGBTQ viewers into
hesitant and skeptical of her Earp
watching their show when they in-
es upon pages upon pages to get
duties.
and super
troduce new queer characters only
you all caught up with what's hap-
smart younger sister, Waverly Earp
to kill them off after a season or
It would honestly take me pag-
Insert:
cute
pening in the quaint little demonic
(Dominique
Provost-Chalkley)
two. But the producers of Wynon-
town of Purgatory, USA so I will
and Special Agent Dolls (Shami-
na Earp have seen the incredible
attempt to blast through some of
er Anderson) of the Black Badge
impact the relationship
the important
Division (a super secret govern-
Waverly and Nicole (ship name
the entire show is important and
ment
#WayHaught) has sparked.
relevant, so you can get a sense of
paranormal, demonic and evil/un-
what you're dealing with here. I'm
explained phenomena), Wynonna
starts right in the beginning of
honestly hoping that by this point,
begins to hunt down the revenants
season one in episode two when
most of you have hopped onto
that raise havoc in their tiny town.
the new deputy in town goes in to
the Earper Express and are riding
Did I mention Doc Holliday (Tim
get a cup of coffee from Shorty's,
bits, even though
task
force
dealing
with
The #WayHaught
Purgatory's
between
relationship
local watering
hole
Badass Highway with me and the
Rozon) also is totally
rest of the fandom!
and comes back from living in a
where Wyatt Earp used to drink,
immortal
well (legit a freaking well, like for
where Waverly works. It's obvious
Beau Smith, the SyFy hit follows
water) for the past century to help
Nicole's intentions
the legend of the Earp curse in
save the day-while
also being
with Waverly and get a feel for her.
Purgatory. Wyatt Earp was one
super-in-love with Wynonna? No?
Although Waverly is currently dat-
of the most famous lawmen in
Well, yes that happens too!
Based on the comic series by
our history (actual history!) and
were to flirt
ing, Champ (Dylan Koroll), it's clear
Apart from being an amazing-
Waverly is smitten
with him was a curse: that all the
ly conceived piece of television,
Haught's
outlaws he killed, now called reve-
Wynonna
Earp brings
suave and charismatic swagger.
forth
an
adorable
with Officer
dimples
and
nants, would come back from hell
authentic
same-sex relationship
Without giving too much away,
after each Earp heir died. The only
between Waverly and the town's
season one slowly brings these
way to stop them from destroying
deputy, Nicole Haught (Kat Bar-
two gorgeous specimens together
the town, running amuck in every
rell). We see their feelings for each
in one pivotal scene where Waver-
new decade and putting a damp-
other completely blossom before
ly visits Nicole at the sheriff's sta-
er on the quality of life of the Earp
our very eyes all throughout sea-
tion with one thing on her mind.
family is to shoot them between
son one and two. Thanks to show-
Not that (yet). She confesses her
the eyes with
revolver,
runner and writer, Emily Andras,
feelings to a bewildered Haught
Peacemaker.
previously of the acclaimed SyFy
who was under the assumption
Jump to present day and we have
series Lost Girl, we finally get to
that this "we're only friends" thing
Wynonna (Melanie Scrofano), the
see a valid and true relationship
was actually going to stick. A su-
Wyatt's
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 75
POPCORN
per endearing speech is given by a
nervous Waverly which ends with
one another.
Season two
to be a super brain and bad ass
is also just
an
a steamy little make out session
amazing array of truly remarkable
on the boss' couch. I mean, I didn't
women. Wynonna gets a pregnan-
rewind that at all or anything.
cy storyline written into the plot
(good) revenant. Are you keeping
up?
This season has proved to be a
rollercoaster
ride of emotions for
The amazing thing about the
because real life Melanie Scrofano
everyone in the cast. Each charac-
#WayHaught relationship is that it
had announced she was pregnant
ter had their own storyline which, in
matters to so many people on the
before the season even began
some way, complimented everyone
planet. After shows like The 100 or
shooting. Scrofano shot the entire-
else's. It ended with so many ques-
Buffy killed off our representation,
ty of season two pregnant, all the
tions to be answered and, HOORAY,
Wynonna Earp is creating a safe
way up until the nine month mark,
we have a season three coming in
space for our queer little hearts.
while still playing the ass-kicking
mid-2018 (I'm not sure I can wait
Earp heir that she is. This truly
that long).
At the ClexaCon convention in
Las Vegas, Nevada last
March
our beloved showrunner spoke to
a massive crowd surrounding the
#WayHaught
panel.
showed the incredible power and
strength of women.
Season two also brought the in-
So, what did we learn from this
rant of mine?
1. Emily Andras knows her sh*t
She spoke
troduction of two new characters
of having a high respect for the
to the gang, both of which happen
3. Women KICK ass
LGBTQ community and wanting to
to be on Team Queer and both of
4. Wynonna Earp creates a
do them justice. She also said that
which happen to be super ador-
platform for strong and positive
writing
a same-sex relationship
able. Jeremy (Varun Saranga) is
representation
needed to be true and authentic.
a super brain who works for the
Every relationship
goes through
2. #WayHaught is endgame
Black Badge Division as a lab rat.
Season one is available now to
rough patches and struggles so
His main purpose is to be wicked
stream on Netflix while season two
Andras made sure to incorporate
smarter than everyone else. Rosi-
is available On Demand from your
these
#Way-
ta (Tamara Duarte) is the sexy bar
cable carriers.
Haught scenario without leading
matron at the now Doc Holliday
to the death of one of them. This
owned Shorty's who also happens
aspects
into
the
April at ClexaCon, Katherine Barrell and Tamara Duarte are both
featured guests in a stunning ClexaCon Featured Guests lineup.
In season two we see the relationship
of Waverly and Nicole
blossom to something incredibly
strong. Although they have their
bumps (there are bunches) and
curve balls thrown at them it's
pretty clear how much they love
76
CURVE
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syfy.com
POPCORN
Carmina
AtClexacon
Our two favorite web-series starlets are ready to dish.
LisaTedesco
>,
:::,
..0
en
QJ
j
if)
Last we left off, the #Hollstein ship
was makingtheirway out of a cavernous
what are they doing in those five years
were remarkably comfortable to wear,'
post-earthending?
says Negovanlis.''There was, however,
hole in the groundafter savingthe Silas
''Theyfinallyget to seeParis;'says Ne-
Universitycampus and the entire world
govanlis."Onceit was all said and done
from eminent doom. The Carmi/lagirls,
they got to travel.Carmillaalso became
The film also stars Dominique Pro-
LauraHollis (EliseBauman)and Carmil-
supersupportiveof Laura'scareer.She's
vost-Chalkley,known for playing Waverly
la Karnstein(NatashaNegovanlis)have
just enjoyinghumanlife'.'
a bit of a power struggle as to who was
leading'.'
Earpon WynonnaEarp.This time she plays
seen some roughtimes over the series'
Duringtheir romance,Carmillabegins
three epic seasonson the KindaTV You-
to feel the urge for blood again,and the
who's come back to clean up looseends.
Tube channel,but through all the heart-
prospectof re-vampingbecomesa real-
She also gets to show off her sexy,au-
Ell, Carmilla's centuries old ex-girlfriend
ache, battles and quirky sentiments,it
ity. Negovanlissays,"She beginsto feel
thentic, British accent. ''This isn't a love
was obviousthat thesetwo were meant
what an addict feels. After all, she was
triangle;'says Bauman."Ell doesn'ttry to
to be together.I was fortunate enough
a blood addict for three hundredyears'.'
sabotage their relationship.She's trying
to hang with the Carmi/laladiesand dis-
Baumanadds: "It starts out very bright-
to figurethings out from whereher old life
cuss the releaseof The Carmi/laMovie,
eyedand bushy-tailed.Youcan see Lau-
left off. Lauraand Ell'scharacterssort of
wherethey reprisetheir famous roles.
ra shift to experiencingactualfear.'
mirroreachother in a sense'.'
Thefilm beginswith the dynamicduo
TheCarmi/laMoviehastaken on some
in their cozy relationshipfive yearsafter
exciting new endeavors.If you caught
they vanquished the apocalypse and
the trailer you will notice changes in
some sexy lady-lovingaction. TheCarmi/la
Carmillabecamea bonafide human.So
scenery,action, and ball gowns! ''They
Movieis the whole package.
Badass female leads, masquerade
balls, perhaps a fight scene or two and
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 77
TRAVELBUG
GoWest
GoSweden
Take a Scandinavian
seafaring adventure.
MerrynJohns
78 CURVE
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TRAVELBUG
0
nly an hour out of Gothenburg, the capital of West
Sweden, nature loving wom-
en can venture along the coast to
sample seafood, scenery, and Swedish culture in the raw.
Approximately the size of Belgium,
West Sweden is its own destination.
This trip, I experienced the province
of Bohuslan on the picturesque and
rocky coast that extends North to
Norway border. The Bohuslan coast
is distinguished by its granite boulders and outcrops which create an
otherworldly
landscape in muted
greys, pinks or gold at sunset against
a slate-and-sapphire colored sea.
Stark Swedish beauty at its best.
Unspoiled by mass tourism, the
Bohuslan Coast has long drawn adventurous souls to it-rock carvings
date back to 800 B.C., and in 1731
the Swedish East India Company
was founded and the area became a
centre for fish production, shipping,
trade, and resorts featuring bathing
and amusement parks. It's also a
place of mystery: Sweden's bestselling crime author, Camilla Lackberg,
comes from a small summer resort
town in Vastra Gotaland.
This portion of the Swedish coast
boasts 8,000 islands and natural
harbors, little red cottages and lighthouses. Famed for its herring, today
C
Q.)
"D
Q.)
(f)
it's more known for mussel farming
in the cold, clear waters and when
in season, prawns, oysters, lobsters,
------°>
·u;
and langoustines (also known as
Norwegian lobsters).
This is a pescatarian's paradise,
where the day boat catch ends up as
your fine dining experience. Swedes
believe in everyday luxury-not opulence, but rather simplicity and freshness equals sophistication. Everyone
should have something good on their
table. That's the Swedish belief.
If you're a fan of Swedish-American screen legend Ingrid Bergman
and want to understand why she always had that healthy glow, a charisma befitting the feminine divine, and
advanced politics regarding women's
and children's rights, you're not too
far from the island where she spent
25 consecutive summers in a cottage in Dannholmen in the Fjallbacka
archipelago.
Here's what I did on my West
Swedish adventure. About a 40-minute drive from Gothenburg to Lyckorna I embarked upon a mussel
"safari" at Musselbaren (the mussel
bar). My small group met up with
Skipper Janne to sail the fjords to
the mile-wide mussel farms where he
explained the sustainable practice of
farming blue mussels, and why, of all
things, they're a good and delicious
choice of sustenance. Back at the
Musselbaren, Janne cooked up the
catch with wine and herbs, served
with freshly baked bread and fries
and we enjoyed our lunch in a quintessentially Swedish environment.
An hour's drive to Nosund is the
family-owned Nosund Havshotell, sit-
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 79
TRAVEL
uated on rolling lawns that go right
During high summer I can imagine
to the edge of the sea. At the begin-
relaxing on the terrace or strolling
once was herring and now is the
ning of the last century, Nosund was
the manicured gardens and possibly
very chic Salt & Sill, Sweden's first
a holiday resort where folks came
even taking a refreshing dip!
floating hotel. The property consists
of Kladesholmen. Its pride and joy
to enjoy steaming seaweed baths
To continue the artistic theme we
and hearty, home-cooked food. To-
headed to Pilane sculpture park on
pontoons affording sparkling vistas
day, Nosund Havshotell carries on
the beautiful and windswept Tjorn
over Bohuslan's outer archipelago.
the tradition offering self-contained,
Island. We wandered up hill and
Decorated with nautical simplicity
simple accommodation and a spa
down dale through a majestically
the cabins on the lower level have
with views and a genuine seaside at-
curated collection of modern envi-
ladders that descend right into the
mosphere. After soaking in the heat-
ronmental sculptures. It's a signifi-
sea. On an upper level is an outdoor
ed pool, I took the ladder down and
cant site not just because of these
hot tub and sauna for relaxing and
dunked myself in the bracing, briny
imposing artworks; ancient tribes
socializing. Explore the town at sun-
sea. To actually get out on the water
chose this rocky, elevated spot as
set and soak up the atmosphere of
I took a guided kayaking tour with
a meeting place and today you can
this fishing community. Then tuck
Kayak in Grundsund and the delight-
still see 90 'judgment circles' and
into dinner at Salt & Sill's excellent
fully outdoorsy Christina lngemars-
raised stones dating back to the
restaurant. Yes, West Sweden is a
dotter. We enjoyed coffee break or
Iron Age.
catch in more ways than one.
ftka in our kayaks, surrounded by
This being Sweden, of course art
the stunning beauty of Boshulan's
is all around you even when you're
archipelago and its rocky forested
up a hill or by the sea. The spartan
coastline. All that paddling made
and stunningly designed Nordiska
the three-course dinner and wine at
Akvarellmuseet (the Nordic Water-
Nosund Havshotell extra delicious.
color Museum) exhibits artists such
From there it was an easy one-
as local legend Arne lsacsson and
hour drive to Ladfabriken, which
touring exhibitions. This museum
means "fish box factory." This gay-
was environmentally certified
owned and operated B&B has been
2014 and the building blends in with
in
lovingly converted from a very hum-
nature to tranquil effect. It is a local
ble structure into an impeccably-de-
landmark that sends out a positive
signed abode full of hand-selected
message of cultural diversity, inspi-
artworks and curios. Located on
ration, heritage and accessibility. At
the edge of the Skagerrak Sea in
Restaurant Vatten (water in Swed-
Bohuslan, Ladfabriken offers four
ish) lunch consists of fresh, locally
distinctive rooms, each with a pri-
caught seafood and views of the
vate bathroom. It was heaven to
gentle Swedish light bouncing off
relax in a midcentury designer chair,
the water.
chat with the handsome and charm-
Only 15 minutes down the road is
ing hosts, and gaze out at the sea.
another island and the quaint town
80 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
of six two-story structures built on
westsweden.com
GO
If YOU
Summer, June to August, can be
cool especially at sundown, so bring
a warm jacket and hat. To dine well
and inexpensively, make your main
meal lunch and eat for less than you
pay at dinner. Alcohol can be pricey
unless you drink moderately or shop
at the state-approved liquor store
(Systembolaget). Tipping is not expected although it is customary to
"round up" the bill. Getting around is
easiest by car but speed limits are
enforced and roundabouts are used
rather than traffic lights. If you don't
wish to drive it's also possible to see
a lot by ferry, rail and tram.
paradise.
WestSwedenis a pescatarian's
TRAVELBUG
C
a.,
""CJ
a.,
5'
U)
A greatwayto experience
the coastalsceneryis by kayak.
82 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
Winter
Get cozy with inspiring and beautifully
photographed food, drink and travel
stories, appearing alongside seasonal
recipes and holiday ideas.
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feb/mar2018 » volume28 number1
Publisher Silke Bader
Founding Publisher Frances Stevens
EDITORIAL
Editor-in-Chief Merryn Johns
Senior Copy Editor Katherine Wright
Contributing Editors Victoria A. Brownworth, Lyndsey D'Arcangelo,
Janelle and Melany Joy Beck, Gillian Kendall, Dave Steinfeld
Editorial Assistants Gemma Dart
OPERATIONS
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Stephanie Schroeder, Brandi Amara Skyy, Yana Tallon-Hicks, Lisa Tedesco
CONTRIBUTING ILLUSTRATORS & PHOTOGRAPHERS
Steph Brusig, Erica Camille, Grace Chu, Shelby Coley, Sheryl Kay, Sara Lautman,
Syd London, Maggie Parker, Diana Price, B. Proud, Robin Roemer, Leslie Van Stelten
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Olub Skirts Dinah Shore Weekend
@DinahShore
Offll
I #TheDinahShore I 888-92dinah
Content
Women We Love: Jetia
Deity Embodies the
Feminine Divine.
The Oakland-based resident DJ and body
artist builds bridges between communities and creates spaces in which queer
women and women of color can express
themselves and feel free.
Rant: Why Queer
Women Can Be Drag
Queens, Too.
Lesbian Drag is a thing and we're not
talking about Drag Kings. We're talking
about cisgender female Drag Queens.
Come behind the scenes and discover
the vibrant stars of yesterday and today.
Wedding: Elena Delle
Donne and Amanda
Clifton Tie the Knot.
This private couple enjoyed the wedding
of their dreams courtesy of The Knot
magazine. And in addition to their big
day, they're giving back to the special
needs community.
6 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
70
Travel Bug: Bite Into
the Bounty of West
Sweden.
Music Talks: English
Singer Alison Moyet
Talks 'Other.'
Fashion: Haute Butch
Has You Suited Up in
Style.
This lesbian-owned and operated style
The chart-topping singer-songwriter has
Always a lesbian-friendly destination,
Sweden's wild and unspoiled West Coast
offers stunning seafood, nature and nautical culture for Scandinavian-centric
adventurers.
always been outspoken about her otherness, while creating gorgeous music for
more than 30 years-and
her LGBTQ
fans love her for it.
start-up is sure to suit butches, tomboys, transmen and masculine-identified
women in search of quality and self-expression.
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 7
OUR TEAM
Contributors
Agunda Okeyo
Patrisse Khan-Cullars
Writer,
producer,
Brandi Amara Skyy
Female Drag
Mihaela Noroc
The Atlas of Beauty
filmmaker,
A writer, drag artist, and activist
For four years Noroc has trav-
comedian and activist born in
who writes, says, and creates
eled continuously around the
Nairobi, Okeyo has called New
things that piss people off or
world, photographing
York City home for more than
inspires them to rise, Skyy cur-
and listening to their stories.
women
20 years. A proud Pan-African,
rently writes for BET and The
She has gathered 500 of these
Okeyo has been published in
Dallas Voice and has appeared
portraits for The Atlas of Beau-
Salon, The Daily Beast, lndiew-
in publications like The Advo-
ty. "Through this book I want
ire's Women and Hollywood,
cate, GenderFork, and The Drag
to honor the wonderful wom-
For Harriet, 0 Magazine, Okay
Queen Guide. She was named
en of our world. To show that
Africa, NBC and Women's Me-
one of Dallas' Latino leaders to
their beauty has no bounds, so
dia Center (WMC) founded by
watch by Latino Leaders Maga-
acceptance, love, and compas-
Jane Fonda, Robin Morgan and
zine, graced thousands of stag-
sion shouldn't either. I hope this
Gloria Steinem, among others.
es worldwide, opened for Lady
book will get into many homes
Okeyo has been featured as
Gaga and Jon Secada, and won
around the world, convincing
a rising producer and activist
the first ever Miss USof A Diva
more people that diversity is a
in Time Out New York, The New
in 2014. She loves cruising with
treasure and not a trigger for
Yorker, Essence, The Root, Black
her partner of eight years and
conflicts and hate. We are very
Enterprise, The Hollywood Re-
being the change she wishes to
different but at the same time
porter, Forbes, NBC, Huffington
see. Find out more about her at
we are all part of the same fami-
Post and The New York Times.
brandiamaraskyy.com.
ly. theatlasofbeauty.com.
8 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
WELCOME
Editorial
Drop
mea line
toletmeknow
whatyouthink
ofourfreshnew
direction.
Editor in Chief
Merryn Johns
W
elcome to the new Curve!We've listened to your
feedback and we've responded to your sugges-
tions with a re-launch of America's best-loved
magazine for LGBTQ women and their friends. Curve is
going quarterly to provide you with a quality reading experience to flt your precious leisure time in this digital age.
You'll still find inside each issue the in-depth features and
interviews that provide a deeper understanding of LGBTQ
and allied culture, as well as the beautiful images that
confirm our diversity in its myriad forms. So, welcome to
the new look Curve. Happy reading, and drop me a line to
let me know what you think of our fresh new direction.
merryn@curvemag.com
@Merrynl
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 9
WOMEN WE LOVE
Jetia
Deity
WhereSheCallsHome
types and expressions. It is my passion to
Originally from Maryland, I am currently
create safer, body positive spaces where
based in Oakland, in the Bay Area of Cal-
people of color (POC) can feel truly free. I
ifornia.
believe that music is a powerful unifying
HowSheIdentifies
I am a queer, two-spirited 'wombmyn.'
tool for healing that can bridge language
barriers, borders, and generations. I believe that my work advocates for liberation
and for radical self-expression.
What'sUpWithHer
As of now I have two DJ residencies in
Passion
Projects
Oakland. Body Party is a queer and sexy
I am most passionate about the shift
hip-hop party at the legendary Starline ev-
into global awakening where people are
ery first Thursday. And another bimonthly
privy to being mindful about their planet
event on first and third Wednesdays called
footprint and holistic approaches to well-
Juke Joint for grown folks that love upbeat
ness. More solar and wind-powered, more
rhythms and can two-step The Layover in
plants, less GMO and blood. I am pleased
the heart of downtown Oakland.
to announce my new YouTube channel
Creative
Soul
I see myself as a Ritual Artist. I lovingly
create content that embodies imagery,
soundscapes, and dance rituals born from
where I will explore these topics and what
it means to acknowledge this shift and the
rise of the Feminine Divine.
KeepInTouch
the African diaspora for the purpose of
Follow me on lnstagram, Soundcloud, and
DNA healing. My events and appearances
Youtube @DJDEITY and @JetiaDeity for
reflect the many faces of the Feminine Di-
mixtapes, art videos, and more.
vine. Oftentimes, attendees at my events
will be stimulated with visuals and wild
go-go dancers (sometimes me) of all body
visitoakland.com
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 11
TRENDS I BEAUTY
OfTheir
OwnVolition
Skincare created and crowdfunded
by diverse women.
lUIIMEltlC
BRIGHTEN1I
NG
POLISH
If you've found yourself disappointed by commercial beauty
products made in laboratories by male scientists, and focused
on female aging for a billion-dollar industry, Volition is for you.
Co-founded by two women, Brandy Hoffman and Patricia Santos
(together they have 40 years experience in skincare), Volition
challenges the beauty industry's status quo and empowers
women to reinvent the beauty paradigm with woman power.
Volition is crowd-sourced by women: female consumers submit
their ideas and experiences to create useful beauty products,
with only the best and most supported ideas going into
production. Meet the creators and their unique creations.
volitionbeauty.com
12 CURVE
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TRENDS I BEAUTY
I
Oil-Control
MattifyingMist
Innovator:
Alice
Developed by a fitness blogger, this
refreshing mist is perfect for
post-workout revitalization and helps
stabilize oil production through amino
acid complex, improving skin moisture
Turmeric
Brightening
PolishForFace
andBody
Innovator:
Anuradha
With her Indian background, Anuradha
understands the powerful properties
of the ancient golden spice turmeric,
favored by Indian brides on their
wedding day. This tux scrub is gentle
levels. Good for all skin types.
and effective, and is vegan and cruelty-
Oceanene
Youth-Boost
Gel
HelixAM/PM
EyeGel
free, without chemicals.
Innovator:
Julie
Innovator:Lindsey
This beauty entrepreneur has
Formulated by a makeup artist from
invented a gel made with brown
algae, hyaluronic acid and Vitamin
C, ingredients that assist collagen
production and brighten, moisturize
and plumps skin, creating 76 percent
reduction of wrinkles.
snail mucin, allantoin, collagen and
elastin, this little wonder provides
long-term anti-aging benefits, renews
the eye area, while cooling and gently
de-puffing skin.
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 13
TRENDS I GIFTS
0
Eve's
Toybox
The Satisfier 1, Next Generation generates waves of pressure for clitoral
stimulation. Affordable, quiet and
travel-friendly. evestoys.com
0
AllintheWrist
These fierce wrist cuffs by NiK Kacy
are made in a small artisan shop in
Portugal and symbolize harmony and
equality. nikkacy.com
G
Charm
Her
Chamilia by Swarovski brings you
Spoken Emoji Petite charms in sterling
silver or 14 karat gold with sparkling
crystals. chamilia.com
0
Between
theCovers
Make your Valentine's Day steamy one
with with a lusty lesbian volume of
female-to-female passion.
cleispress.com
0
Laurent-Perrier
Champagne
Nothing says "I love you" like French
Champagne, especially this rosy 100
percent Pinot Noir Cuvee Rose.
laurent-perrier.com
0
SheCraves
It
The Crave Bullet is a powerful, discreet, enhanced stainless steel vibe
that makes a stylish and uniquely
portable gift. lovecrave.com
14 CURVE
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TRENDS I GIFTS
1
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BEST
ESBIAN
EROTICA=::
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FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 15
RANT
I FEMALEDRAG
was a newly out lesbian when I
I
In New York, artists like Carmelita
saw my first drag queen at age
Tropicana were playing with camp
deeply aware of what drag means
sixteen. Her name was Aaron Da-
and drag aesthetics since the early
to us as a community-and
vis and she was bucking the house
'80s. In the '90s, The World Famous
torical significance in our LGBTQ
down in her big blonde Texas pag-
*BOB,* a self-proclaimed female-fe-
fight for equality. I know that my
eant hair, doing backhand springs in
male impersonator, was living her
gay male brothers have been beat-
six-inch stilettos. I knew right then
life both onstage and off as the fab-
en on the streets and some-times
and there that was what I wanted to
ulous queen that she is. And in 2004
killed because they wanted to wear
do-and
I've dedicated the last 23
in Seattle, The Queen Bees were an
the clothes that society assigned to
years of my life making my sixteen-
all-inclusive performance troupe that
me at birth. I understand that drag,
year-old dream come true.
performed alongside drag queens.
like our gay bars, are our safe spac-
as a queer woman of color, I am also
its his-
But I'm just one of the many cis-
One of their members, Kentucky
es we've created for ourselves when
gender women who have been doing
Fried Woman, would later be one of
the rest of the world condemned us
drag longer than RuPau/'sDrag Race
four women to pen and read the Bio
for wanting the right to love who
fans have been "drag" lovers.
Queen Manifesto-an
love. Nor can I deny that within drag
open letter
When I was first coming out of the
that addressed conference policy
I hold a certain amount of privilege
queen closet, I found the term "faux
on bio queen performances in king
because the same social stigmas
queen" buried in a Wikipedia article
spaces-at
don't apply to me when I walk into
about drag queens. I clicked on the
Drag King Extravaganza aka IDKE3.
the 2001 International
a department store dressing room
link and my world as I knew it blew
It was an herstoric moment and one
with "girl" clothes. So, I get our need
up; I was home. The first female drag
that proves our fight to be taken se-
to protect the sanctity of drag, I re-
queen to pop up was Fauxnique from
riously as drag performers started
ally do.
San Francisco who made herstory
long before RuPaul's 2016 tweet
as the first woman to win the Miss
equating what we do to the Miss Uni-
Trannyshack Pageant in 2003.
verse pageant.
Because I don't want drag stripped
from our radical queer roots either.
But what I don't get is us, the rain-
I followed her rhinestone bread-
Which is why now, when I hear Wil-
bow and diverse community we are,
crumbs and found other West Coast
lam insinuating that our performanc-
perpetuating heteronormative gen-
queens like Bea Dazzler, Holy Mc-
es are not drag because we are "real"
der norms to police queer women's
Grail, and Trixxie Carr. It was through
girls or I read article after article
access to drag when how we live and
them that I discovered the term "faux
about how we can't do drag and that
express our lives are anything but
queen" originated in San Francisco
we're appropriating gay male culture,
hetero, normative, or dichotomous.
and that there was an actual pag-
I get pissed.
eant for the kind of drag I did. The
Because drag isn't some bandwag-
Be-cause while drag may have been
birthed in the theater world in the
Faux Queen Pageant started in 1996
on we are just now jumping on. Drag
1800s, that is not the same drag we
and after a few years' hiatus was
is who we are and who we have been
perform today. Because once we em-
brought back in 2012 by former win-
for decades.
braced drag as our own, we queered
But as much as I want to rally be-
it-meaning we "gayed it up." In the
gest running female drag pageant in
hind all cis-women's (hell, every-
'60s, '70s, and '80s, drag became a
drag history.
body's) right to drag, I can't. Because
radical act that had nothing to do
ner Bea Dazzler, making it the lon-
FEB/MAR
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CURVE 17
RANT
I
FEMALEDRAG
with gender and everything to do
with protesting and subverting a
heterosexual culture that wanted to
shame us into complacency.
And to say that cis-women, espe-
Because
dragisn't
somebandwagon
wearejustnow
jumping
on.Drag
iswhoweareand
whowehavebeen
fordecades.
cially lesbians, cannot coexist within
this queer reclamation of drag is bullshit-not
to mention misogynistic
AF. Particularly since women, both
gay and straight, have been subverting traditional and socially accepted
gender expressions since we unlaced our corsets, unhooked our bustles, ripped off our pantyhose, zipped
up our first pair of jeans, and burned
our bras.
So while I agree with my gay male
counterparts that cis-women performing
drag (especially straight
ones) need to know its historical
context, I also believe a lot of gay
men and drag queens need to do
their due drag diligence, too. Because contrary to popular belief,
drag does not stand for dressed as a
girl-acronyms didn't come into general use until the '60s, centuries after
drag became part of our lexicon. It's
folk etymology that's been touted
as fact to police drag's borders and
dictate who and what can be considered a part of it.
But make no mistake, female drag
queens are and will forever be a part
of drag-and a viable form of it. Because we are the writers of our own
herstory-and
started.
18 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
we're just
getting
LIVING
TRUE
4 timesayear
••••
Spring
Open yourself to our exclusive perspective
on lush lesbian living, including interior
and outdoor design, plus a focus on health,
fitness and renewal.
WHERE WE LIVE
TheLandof
Enchantment
Shyla Sheppard and Missy Begay,
partners in business and in life, are
fostering a beer-lovers' community at their
Native-owned brewery and taproom in the
heart of the American Southwest.
AmyDeneson
20 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
WHERE WE LIVE
T
here's something brewing in
the land is based on our upbringing;'
mannpottery.com). And a mural of
Albuquerque. The craft beer
Begay continues. She was born in
a southwestern sunset spans the
movement is thriving way
Albuquerque and raised in the Dine
long, lively bar where bright beer ex-
out West, and nowhere is great spe-
Nation. Sheppard grew up on the
perts are a wellspring of knowledge
cialty beer more refreshing than at
Fort Berthold Reservation in North
and service.
the Bow & Arrow Brewing Company.
In February 2016, Shyla Sheppard
Dakota, where she is a member of
When you're sampling new seasonal taps, it's easy to make a night
the Three Affiliated Tribes.
and Missy Begay opened their tap-
"From a young age, we were taught
of it. Beers are served in flights,
room in this high-desert city near
that the land has its own spirit. And
5-ounce, 10-ounce, and 16-ounce
the pink Sandia Mountains, where
in my tribe, Mother Earth is our
pours, and can be taken home in
they serve wild, sour, and bar-
mother;' Begay says. 'The land pro-
sealed growlers. Bow & Arrow will
rel-aged beers that are brewed on-
vides water, earth, plants-every-
soon begin bottling their select bar-
site. In collaboration with their head
thing you need to brew great beer.
rel-aged beers. Guests certainly do
brewer, Ted O'Hanlan, they strive to
We're conscientious about where
sip and stay awhile. When hunger
integrate local ingredients that are
our ingredients come from, and we
arises, bar snacks include the local
both adventurous and unique to the
take great care in selecting them."
Popcorn Cannery's surprise flavors,
area.
"There is a long history in the
Southwest of cultures melding to-
Their vision for brewing great beer
like green chile and cheddar, and
also includes creating an enriching
pueblo bread and butter from Grand-
space for their community.
ma Jo's Bakery on the Laguna Pueb-
gether;' Begay says, when we con-
"We opened Bow & Arrow in our
lo. Out in the parking lot, food trucks
nect for an interview. "The indige-
own neighborhood;' Sheppard says.
serve tasty tacos, hot dogs, and
nous culinary tradition here is very
"We are committed to bringing peo-
more nosh, which can be devoured
strong."
ple together and were very cogni-
on the spot or delivered to the table.
"We're particularly proud of our for-
zant of how we designed the space
Sheppard and Begay also welcome
age-inspired series;' Sheppard says,
so that people can interact-even if
those with something to celebrate.
noting their Wild Sumac, described
they walk in by themselves."
in their beer menu as an earthy lem-
Pride parties and mixers for the lo-
From the taproom, in an indus-
cal LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce
and
have lit up their taproom. They've
"We're taking a super-common in-
steam-powered brewery is visible.
hosted a screening of The Whistle
onade with a desert sparkle.
trial
warehouse, the
steel
gredient;' Begay explains, referring
Yet the space is crisp and clean, and
by director StormMiguel Florez and
to local sumac berry, traditionally
as warm to the senses as the fine-
donated space for grassroots orga-
used for a tart pudding, "and sourc-
lined hop cone in their geometric
nizing, a Southwest-themed speaker
ing it from the Navajo Agricultural
hop-meets-arrowhead logo. Long
series, and neighborhood associa-
Products Industry, where it was
communal tables welcome an ebb
tion meetings. On Tuesdays, there's
handpicked by Navajo people, and
and flow of locals and visitors alike
yoga.
brewing it here to make a classic
in the arid country. Wildflower sprigs
Berliner Weisse, which has become
sprout from small bud vases hand-
really popular."
"Having a strong connection to
"We're all
about
promoting
a
healthy lifestyle;' Sheppard says.
made by the local pottery collec-
The partners fell in love with beer-
tive, Hanselmann Pottery (hansel-
and with each other-when they met
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 21
WHERE WE LIVE
in college at Stanford University.
monality is beer! Let's focus on that."
In addition to their studies in eco-
The Brewers Association, the nation-
nomics (Sheppard) and medicine
al umbrella organization for U.S. craft
(Begay), they learned about German
breweries, has recently developed a
beers at the nearby Gordon Biersch
diversity committee to address race
tavern and started traveling to ex-
and gender issues in the beer industry.
plore the craft breweries sprouting
"Everything from asking, 'Are cer-
up throughout the U.S.
Bow & Arrow was "born out of
tain beer labels offensive?' " Begay
says, "to trying to aggregate statistics
our love for landscape, food, and
about the industry." She mentions a
culture;' Begay says. "When open-
2014 study at their alma mater, Stan-
ing a brewery became a reality, we
ford University, noting that about 20
drew from our natural love of those
percent of craft breweries have a fe-
things."
male CEO or have a woman holding
Their name, Bow & Arrow, is described as representing self-reliance,
protection, flexibility, and skill.
"Have you experienced any resistance to your enterprise?" I ask.
"I experience what I'd call 'curios-
a management position, "which is a
huge and surprising percentage."
And while they do tend to work behind the scenes, Sheppard says, "We
recognize the value and significance
of being visible-as
women of color,
ity' on a daily basis;' Sheppard re-
as entrepreneurs, as business people
sponds. "I work behind the bar. I'm
making our way in a very male-domi-
serving people beer and interacting
nated industry."
with customers because I enjoy it.
"Shyla and I have had some really
But frequently, people are really sur-
great mentors along the way;' Begay
prised that we're the owners-to the
says, and expresses their commitment
point that they really question it and
to inspiring others. Sheppard and Be-
ask why we would want to do this:'
gay's approach is rooted in their belief
This is not new, she continues;
in Seven Generation Sustainability.
they have both excelled in other
"Speaking out and being visible is re-
male-dominated fields: Sheppard in
ally important for future generations;'
venture capital, and Begay as a prac-
Begay says, "so that they can freely
ticing physician.
aspire to do what they want to do,
"Add race and sexuality;' says
Sheppard, "and it's a bit too much
for some people. They don't know
how to approach you;' she says, with
whether they are gay or indigenous or
whatever."
Cheers to them and all they're creating at Bow & Arrow.
a tone of bewilderment in her voice.
"Which is a funny thing. Our com-
22 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
bowandarrowbrewing.com
WHERE WE LIVE
FEB/MAR
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CURVE 23
FEATURESI WEDDING
24 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
FEATURESI WEDDING
Dream
Brides
Elena Delle Donne and
Amanda Clifton give back with
their dream wedding.
LyndseyD'Arcangelo
Last year, on November 3rd, in front
of 200 of their closest friends and
family members, WNBA All-Star and
MVP Elena Delle Donne married her
longtime girlfriend Amanda Clifton.
The two said "I do" at the Hempstead
House resort on the North Shore of
Long Island, N.Y. It was literally a
dream wedding, as Delle Donne and
Clifton were selected for The Knot's
Dream Wedding-a highly publicized
event in which one lucky couple gets
to live out their dreams and have everything planned for them by the best
of the best in the wedding industry.
"I don't know who wouldn't want
The Knot to give you your dream wedding;' Delle Donne laughed during a
phone call before the wedding took
place. "After we got engaged, my
agent called both of us and said that
a pretty cool opportunity had come
about with a magazine called The
Knot. They wanted us to be their first
same-sex couple for the Dream Wedding series. She asked if we were in-
FEB/MAR
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CURVE 25
FEATURESI WEDDING
terested and of course we were."
Brooklyn-based
wedding
planner
Even though Delle Donne and Clif-
Jove Meyer and discussed their likes
ton had kept their relationship and
and dislikes. They said he kept them
private life out of the spotlight, as the
actively involved in all the details as
first same-sex couple to appear on
time progressed, emailing them dif-
The Knot's Dream Wedding they felt it
ferent options regarding the venue,
was a great opportunity to share their
flowers arrangements, dresses, and
love story with the world and help
rings. Once the All-Star break hit
break down some of the harmful ste-
mid-season, Delle Donne was able to
reotypes that still exist about same-
take some time to meet with Meyer
sex couples.
again, in person and with Clifton by
"Elena has always been super-pri-
her side. And after a game in New
vate, and I'm not-in any way, shape,
York City, they got together with their
or form;' joked Clifton. "We talked
moms to sample good food, includ-
about it and weighed that in, but at
ing four different types of wedding
the same time we knew it was a great
cakes. In the end, they decided on a
opportunity. We wanted to let people
cake with 11 tiers that stood over six
know it's OK to be gay and be public
feet high-yet, it was still shorter than
about it, and normalize what we are."
Delle Donne.
"That was another big reason for
Another aspect of the planning in-
saying yes to The Knot;' Delle Donne
volved what to do about wedding
added. "Obviously, it's great to have
gifts. As a high-profile couple, Delle
them plan the wedding, but to have
Donne and Clifton felt they already
it out there in People magazine, Us
had everything they wanted, and
Weekly,and all these different media
made the decision to do something
outlets is what we're all about-nor-
charitable instead.
malizing the fact that women get mar-
"[The Elena Delle Donne Founda-
ried to women, and men get married
tion) gives back to the special needs
to men. It doesn't matter. The more
community. And we like to give back
that people see things in the media
in a way where families who are
and on television, the more they be-
struggling to take care of their chil-
come normal, and it's not such a huge
dren with special needs have the re-
coming-out anymore. So, if we could
sources to make it a little bit easier;'
be a part of that process, that's what
Delle Donne said. "Also, the founda-
was really important for us."
tion gives money to Lyme disease
Once they were set on moving for-
and treatment. I've been dealing with
ward with The Knot, planning the
Lyme disease for eight and a half
wedding kicked off before the start
years, and the treatment and diag-
of the WNBA season. Delle Donne
nosis process isn't where it should
and Clifton sat down with renowned,
be. The Knot had the idea to set up
26 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
FEATURESI WEDDING
>-
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0
ii
Q_
>m
u
u
Q.)
Ll
Q.)
a:
FEB/MAR
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CURVE 27
FEATURESI WEDDING
a registry to give money to the Elena
Delle Donne Foundation, and we were
immediately, like, yes! So, we were
super-excited to have our special day
and to be able to give back in some
way at the same time."
"The Knot has made it so seamless,
and it took a lot of the stress off of
us;' Clifton said. "I know a lot of brides
get wrapped up in the tiny details and
some things are just out of your control. But we just went with the flow
and enjoyed it." It was the first time
that everyone, on both sides of their
families, were together at once-and
it made their wedding day truly special. That, and finally getting to say "I
do" to each other.
"I love how real Amanda is;' Delle
Donne beamed. "She's true to her
feelings and can communicate those
feelings far better than I've ever been
able to, and she's got a huge heart for
all the people who are close to her."
"My favorite thing about Elena is
kind of the opposite;' Clifton said.
"Her willingness to keep everything
light and not take life too seriously.
She's always makes everything fun,
and says that life is not as serious as
I normally take it. She's the lighthearted one of us."
It sounds like their Dream Wedding
was a dream come true.
theknot.com/dreamwedding
28 CURVE
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FEATURESI WEDDING
>-
_c
0
ii
Q_
Q.)
m
>-
i
m
a:
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 29
FASHION
I DRESSINGUP
If you need to be suited out for your Valentine's Day date, look no further than Haute Butch, the
lifestyle brand outfitting
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masculine-identified women, these quality garments might even see you all the way to your wedding day.
Designed by KMichelle (aka Karen), the company's founder, designer, and CEO,Karen is also a U.S. Navy
Veteran and entrepreneur, and sits on the advisory board for the Fashion Studies Program at the Santa
Rosa Junior College. From ties to tuxedos, Haute Butch will have you looking fierce.
hautebutch.com
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 33
Floral
Dream
Coat.
Hoodie
andJoggers
$125-$250
Custom made in L.A. from
Neoprene.
FASHION
I GENDERLESS
Stunning
Stuzo
Streetwise kicks in fine fabrics from Stuzo Clothing's The Lux Collection.
Photos:Molly Adams @Mollyktadams
Models:Yseult & Armineii
Location:Manhattan
Shop online: stuzoclothing.com
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 35
STYLE I ICON
36 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
STYLE I ICON
OurManChaz
Chaz Bono is finally hitting his stride.
VictoriaA. Brownworth
0
ff-screen Bono is the antith-
has been rewarding. It's clear AHS:Cult
myself;' but he knew he wasn't going to
esis of Gary Longstreet, the
has had an impact on Bono as an actor
be able to get male roles and he wasn't
cultist who cuts
and helped him to situate himself in his
good at traditional female roles. In 2011
off his own arm to be able to vote for
homicidal
career. But he would never be able to be
he returned to acting class and the craft
Donald Trump on FX's Ryan Murphy
part of a cult, he laughs, then gets se-
now drives him. "I auditioned for How
series, American Horror Story. Warm,
rious. "My girlfriend said, 'The gasoline
to GetAway with Murder.I was putting
engaging, and determined to put peo-
is fear. The election was just the match:
an audition on tape. My manager said
ple at ease, the famous son of famous
That's how cults are born'.' Anyone
'slow down' and I said 'I am prepping for
working with Shonda Rhimes!' "
parents whose mother, Cher,fights with
who's watched AHS: Cult can see an
Trump on Twitter, is a down-to-earth
eerie prescience between the rallies on
guy who just wants to act.
the drama and the rally that led to Char-
resisted taking trans roles. He didn't
lottesville in August 2017.
want to be typecast. "I'm an actor who
And act he does. Bone's understated
Unlike many trans actors, Bono has
yet forceful work on AHS:Cult sets the
For Bono, being part of Ryan Mur-
happens to be transgender. If you get
tone of the Us v. Them plot in his first
phy's coterie is a pivotal step for him
known best for doing stuff that isn't
interaction with Sarah Paulson, who
in a career he's returned to in earnest.
acting, then it's harder for people to see
plays lesbian entrepreneur Ally May-
Bono has previously been part of Danc-
you as an actor and take you seriously
fair-Richards. Ally presumes that Long-
ing with the Stars,and also had a stint
as one'.' As for whether he wants to be
street's politics are the same as hers in
as a singer and performer, as well as
a standard bearer for trans actors, Bono
the small-town Michigan market where
authoring several books. In 2011 the
says, "I just am living in the world. I have
she encounters him late at night after
documentary, Becoming Chaz,offered
lots of LGBTfriends and colleagues, I'm
the 2016 election. But then he pulls
a brave and brutally frank look at every
very comfortable with a diverse peer
out a red MAGA cap and everything
aspect of his transition, which he an-
group. I wouldn't want to narrow that
shifts-for Ally and for the viewer. Theirl
nounced in 2010. Bono had previously
group to exclude anyone:' He seems
exchange is emblematic of what hap-
come out publicly as a lesbian in 1995
satisfied with his personal life as well.
pened on election night 2016 when half
and had been a long-time LGBTactivist.
"I'm in a heterosexual relationship;' with
of America realized that their neighbors
But acting is where he first experi-
"the first girl I ever kissed. We kind of
enced comfort in his own skin. "I start-
went our different ways. Then we met
ed acting when I was 14;' he explains.
back up. It feels good:'
were not who they thought they were.
There's a brutal dichotomy in a transman who's spent most of his adult life
"My senior year I was cast as a male
What's next for Chaz Bono? "I'm a
fighting for LGBT civil rights playing
character. I felt so good on stage'.' Bono
character actor. I'm waiting for my next
a Trump supporter. Bono says the ex-
says the experience in 1987 "highlight-
gig. So hopefully something will be
perience has been as challenging as it
ed how much I wasn't comfortable with
coming around soon'.'
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 37
LIVING
Spring
Open yourself to our exclusive perspective
on lush lesbian living, including interior
and outdoor design, plus a focus on health,
fitness and renewal.
TRUE
Summer
Allow yourself to be inspired by leading
queer women. Hear the voices of modern
female executives, artists, activists, and
the celebrities who engage us.
4 timesayear
curvemag.com
Fall
Embrace a more expansive view of
beauty. From androgynous fashion to
diverse body image, distinctive looks to
dress a beauty and a butch.
Winter
Get cozy with inspiring and beautifully
photographed food, drink and travel
stories, appearing alongside seasonal
recipes and holiday ideas.
FOOD
I REVOLUTION
40
CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
FOOD
I REVOLUTION
Oakland
Spice
Chef Preeti Mistry combines Indian heritage and activism.
MerrynJohns
0
akland has been experiencing a queer culinary boom for
some time, and one of the brightest stars on the scene is
chef and restaurateur Preeti Mistry of Navi Kitchen, an Indi-
an-inspired pizza cafe, and Juhu Beach Club, a homey-yet-hip bistro
specializing in Indian street food. Oakland is a beacon for artists and
activists, and the birthplace of the revolutionary socialist Black Pan-
ther Party. "It's always attracted people who are living their lives the
way that want to and not the way that other people prescribe;' says
Mistry. "I love my chosen family here, I love the community. Queer
women of color have lived here for decades, way before it was cool.
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 41
FOOD
I REVOLUTION
There's a local pride that comes from
up restaurant. As part of the Indian
ranchers-you're
a 'yes we can' place as opposed to a
diaspora (she was born in London
She's also critical of the lack of diver-
'yeah we are' place!'
to Indian parents and raised in Ohio),
sity in fine dining. "Just because your
family gatherings and social occa-
dishwasher's Mexican doesn't mean
sions were prioritized.
you have diversity. Who's at the top?
Mistry is a hard-working DIV chef;
while we talk she receives mail, takes
deliveries, and makes batches of
Mistry's restaurants and her book
not the only one!'
Who has the power?"
spicy popcorn. She plans to even-
are personal and political. "Cooking
Cultural appropriation is a hot topic
tually close Juhu to focus on Navi
the cuisine of my cultural heritage
these days, in everything from acting,
Kitchen but intends Juhu to live on
is fucking personal;' she tells me.
to fashion, to food. "If you're a white
in different forms in the future. The
"When there's Yelpers and haters out
guy cooking Vietnamese cuisine, no
lovely,colorful and politically inspiring
there want to dismiss it as 'Asian-fu-
one's telling you you can't use ga-
TheJuhu Beach Club Cookbookis one
sion: it feels like they're missing so
langal. Just have some respect and
such incarnation With the tagline "In-
much. If you didn't grow up as an
awareness of what you're doing and
dian Spice, Oakland Soul" and blurbed
immigrant in this country, there is a
be prepared to talk about it." There's a
by food guru Anthony Bourdain, it's a
certain tendency of reductionism!'
disconnect, she says, that has to do
worthy addition to your queer kitchen.
But Mistry has many fans, especial-
with profit. Whereas she's cooking
Mistry and her wife Ann Nadeau
ly other second generation immi-
her mom's recipes, and has a gen-
have been together for 18 years, and
grants who understand the colonial
uine emotional and cultural connect
as a couple as well as business part-
legacy, whether Indian, Caribbean,
to that labor. But she's not above get-
ners, they have a high profile role in
British or Australian. Juhu redefines
ting back at the appropriators.
their intersectional community. They
Indian-American identity and cui-
"The ongoing joke at Navi Kitch-
see their restaurants as local hubs,
sine. "I feel really proud that I made
en is 'colonize the colonizers'!' And
with friends dropping in to visit or
an impact, that people can see that
the cocktails in The Juhu Beach Club
asking for advice. "Everyone comes
it's more than saag paneer, naan
Cookbookwink at the whiteness of
in and chats with you about whatev-
and chicken tikka masala-not that I
cocktails. Sex on Juhu Beach is an
er's going on in the community. We
don't love those things. There's just
improvement of a trashy classic add-
employ a lot of artists, activists and
so much more!'
ing chai masala and mango. "We all
young people who look to me and
Mistry has been outspoken about
globally appropriate from each other.
Ann when something is going on in
elitist celebrity chefs appropriating
It would be terrible if we were all liv-
our world. I've always been involved
ethnic cuisine to spice up Europe-
ing in our silos. The difficulty comes
in a certain amount of social justice.
an tradition. "We're all one industry;
in with inappropriate appropriation-
I didn't decide to become a chef be-
whether you have a food truck or a
when people with privileged back-
cause I wanted to be on TV and get
three Michelin-starred restaurant. It's
grounds profit from a culture that
Michelin stars or a James Beard
cooking, plain and simple. It's infuri-
doesn't have that level of privilege
Award. I went to culinary school be-
ating to me how there's a segment
and power!'
cause I liked cooking and I liked the
of the industry that thinks they're the
way it brought people together!' Mis-
only ones that matter." Mistry has de-
book and grab a copy of The Juhu
try first learned the importance of
scribed fine dining as 'disingenuous'.
BeachClubCookbook.Then get cook-
community when she was in her 20s
"To think that you can serve the one
ing-creatively and consciously.
and living in San Francisco where she
percent, yet feel good about yourself
hosted dinner parties and ran a pop-
because you support farmers and
42
CURVE
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FEB/MAR
So take a leaf out of Oakland's
juhubeachclub.com
FOOD
I REVOLUTION
Ginger
Chile
Dungeness
Crab
PreetiMistry
Dungeness crab season is a big deal in the Bay Area. It usually
starts right before Thanksgiving and runs until March. The crab
is a popular dish on holiday tables-and
its limited availability
only makes it more special. In my opinion, Dungeness crab rivals
New England lobster in terms of taste, texture, and sheer size.
A shout-out to my absolute favorite seafood restaurant in Mumbai-Mahesh Lunch Home, where I always order the fresh crabfor seed-planting status on this recipe.
INGREDIENTS:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Melt the butter in a large cas-
G
0
G
G
0
G
pound unsalted butter
serole on medium heat. Add the curry leaves, ginger, and
cup fresh curry leaves
garlic. The curry leaves will crisp, and the ginger and gar-
cup ginger, minced
teaspoon Indian red chili powder
pieces: snap off the legs and quarter the body using a
cleaned (substitute other crab or
lobster if unavailable)
CURVE
the chili powder and wine. Let the wine simmer for about
5 minutes, until the alcohol burns off. Break the crab into
Dungeness crabs, cooked and
0
0
G
lic will begin to brown-after about 5 minutes. Then add
cup garlic, minced
cup dry white wine
e
44
METHOD:
large chef knife. Add the crab to the butter mixture, season with salt, and toss the crab to coat all the pieces.
Place the casserole in the oven for about 15 minutes;
halfway through cooking, remove it from the oven and
stir to mix the sauce with the crab. Garnish with lemon
and cilantro. Serve with crusty bread. Serves 2 to 4
tablespoon salt
lemon, cut in wedges
bunch cilantro, roughly chopped
I
FEB/MAR
Reprintedwith permission from TheJuhu BeachClubCookbook
© 2077 by Preeti Mistry with SarahHenry,RunningPress
CULTURE I TRIP
TheMother
of
AllFestivals
Reporting back from the
third year of MOTHERSHIP.
ChloeCurran
Do you like lesbians and thirst for intersectional
enlightenment? How about camping and live music?
Workshops and a fully stocked bar? MOTHERSHIP,in
the Indio Valley, is the festival for you. Founded by Los
Angeles-based therapist Laura Wise three years ago,
MOTHERSHIP has seen remarkable growth, and this
year attracted over 400 attendees from the United
States and Canada.
MOTHERSHIP took place in a picturesque private
campground at the base of the Indio Mountains, October 13-15. The large property provided ample space
for tent and RV camping. Alongside our makeshift
women's village was a circular center with activities,
food and drink tents, and a small stage for nighttime
FEB/MAR
I
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CULTURE I TRIP
musical performances. The effect was open and wel-
around topless, happily relaxing sans underwire in the
coming. "Everyone was so happy to be there, the ex-
fierce California sun. Sexual harassment isn't an is-
citement was contagious;' said Cailin, 30, a volunteer
sue. All bathrooms are open to everyone. Sisterhood
from L.A.
and solidarity are the terms of the day.
At night, the lights of the festival twinkled merrily
The programming is chock-full of workshops, which
beneath a perfectly starry night, as excited women
encompass everything from the inspirational, to the
passed to and from the bar and the dance floor, the
kinky, to the nostalgic. Where else will you find BDSM
music boomed just loudly enough, and the feeling of
tutorials side-by-side with Girl Scout Camp fare such
warm possibility seemed to dissolve the reticence
as crafts and chess? Day 1 kicked off at noon on Fri-
of even the shiest participants. This easy joy and
day, October 13, with "Biggie Smalls the lllest Femi-
welcoming spirit is MOTHERSHIP's greatest accom-
nist;' a presentation about the late rapper's feminist
plishment. "That's something I love about the event, it
proclivities. It was followed, at one-hour intervals, by
a "Solo Traveler Meet Up" ice-breaker and a diverse
panel discussion on a "Feminist Call to Action." At 3
Take
whatyouwant
fromMOTHERS
HIP.
From
seeking
inner
truthtojustchecking
outacoolscene.
p.m., attendees could choose between the sexy "How
to Drive a Vulva" and the G-rated "Chess for Beginners
and Queens."
Then, at 4 p.m., the "Women with Super Powers"
panel featured women in the arts discussing the in-
tersection of art and healing. At 5 p.m., the final three
workshops provided attendees with the opportunity
to either sit or stand. At 'The Intersection of Feminism & Tech" panelists explained how technology
can be harnessed for feminism and activism. "Bold
Alchemy Self-Defense Class" provided a fun tutorial
in self-protection. "Craft Time with Mama Jill" was a
chill adult craft session heavy on hugs and chatting.
As the sun started to set, attendees grabbed dinner
from the food trucks and drinks from the bar, or made
their own refreshments in their tents and RVs. Many
campers set up drink tables and mini-grills, creating a
brings new people together who would otherwise never meet. I have already begun to see collaborations
that arose from the event, and that's what it's aboutconnection and support amongst women;' said Wise.
MOTHERSHIP is open to all female, female-identified, and non-binary people with a couple hundred
bucks and a yen to explore their inner empowerment.
Or BDSM. Or queer politics. Or just drink to a cause
(The Tegan and Sara Foundation) in the desert with a
bunch of mostly queer women. You can take what you
want from MOTHERSHIP-from seeking inner truth to
just checking out a cool scene. While 65 percent of attendees identify as LGBTQ,MOTHERSHIP is open to
all. The nice thing about removing men from the mix
is the sense of relaxation that follows. MOTHERSHIP
is body friendly, and several attendees chose to walk
46 CURVE
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FEB/MAR
merry tailgate village. The evening programming featured an impressive lineup of DJs and live performers,
including L.A. club kids Bounce House and Goodboy,
the internet-famous Madame Gandhi, and the lnstagram-famous Madison Paige. For those looking to
get weird and/or decorated, the Creativity tent offered
costumes, body and face paint, and henna. After a
long day of structured, often intellectual activities, everyone enjoyed a chance to relax, mingle, and do their
own thing. Women danced freely in the crisp evening,
wearing everything from evening outfits to skimpy
Burning Man rave ensembles. People of every race
and body type let down their guard, smiling and greeting anyone who passed, and striking up conversations with strangers in this rare, queer-centric, women-only bonding experience. Everyone enjoyed the
CULTURE I TRIP
QJ
N
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(/)
ro
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FEB/MAR
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CULTURE I TRIP
atmosphere, partying enthusiastically until the music
Let's talk about the Masturbation tent. I was intrigued
stopped at 1 a.m., when the guests went to sleep or
by the name. While I was waiting in a long line for na-
continued their fun in smaller, secluded knots.
chos at the Mexican food truck, a woman approached
The funny thing about camping is that you're ready
the line and announced: "There are women in the Mas-
to wake up early. The sun beats through your tent,
turbation tent, if any of you want to join:' My inner cu-
and the rustling of an awakening community, the low
riosity battled with my hunger. From a quick glance
murmur of voices, and a growling stomach make ris-
around, I saw that the other women in line were facing a
ing shortly after dawn both inevitable and unusually
similar dilemma. Food or fucking? We all elected food.
enjoyable. After standing in line for smoothies and
A middle-aged woman behind me in flowing robes and
muffins, and using the small but spacious bathroom
an ornate crown took the silence as an opportunity to
facilities (standing bathroom toilets in addition to the
tell us about herself. "I'm straight and married, but I felt
inevitable festival porta potties), women filtered into
a calling to come here;' she told me earnestly. "I always
their selected activities.
heed the call of the universe. It speaks to me."
Saturday's programming began with "Inner Empow-
Finally, at 4 p.m. on Day 2 came the headliners we
erment Yoga and Meditation" at 8 a.m. to cleanse the
were all waiting for. Tegan and Sara, our lesbians dei-
mind and stretch the body. At 9 a.m., there was either
ties, graced us with their divine presence for the aptly
"Microdosing with a Marijuana Goddess;' a holistic tu-
named panel "In Conversation with Tegan and Sara:'
torial on treating anxiety and health issues with tiny
They spoke to enthusiastic attendees about their new
amounts of weed, or "Breathwork Workshop;' which
nonprofit, The Tegan and Sara Foundation, and encour-
promised an "indescribable release" through that hum-
aged us all to make music, find power, etc. Followed by
ble bodily function called breathing. There's a serious
a "Women's Sexuality in Media" panel and "Hand Drum-
strain of natural health care ideology running through
ming for Beginners;' the final full day of MOTHERSHIP
much of MOTHERSHIP'sprogramming.
wound down.
Aspiring lesbian mothers enjoyed the 10 a.m. "Birth
The evening festivities were warm and relaxed. Aeri-
Justice and Empowerment" workshop. At 11 a.m., at-
al performers gracefully weaved around a beribboned
tendees chose between "Somatic Shamanic Practices
maypole as the music began. DJ Little Indian spun retro
for Healing Women;' a workshop on spiritual healing,
tunes, followed by the queer pop-punk outfit WASI,then
especially after trauma, and "Female Travel Warrior,' a
DJ FAAROW,DJ Dirty Rich Kid, and finally the spectacu-
conversation on the realities of traveling solo and fe-
larly talented singers of Halle. Everyone made the most
male, and an additional opportunity for solo travelers
of their last night at MOTHERSHIP As I watched, two
to connect. While many attendees came with friends,
gorgeous girls in skimpy cowgirl outfits and glittery
a sizable portion came alone, and MOTHERSHIPplan-
body paint spanked each other and made out behind
ners made a point of helping lone travelers feel wel-
the bar. No one seemed particularly drunk; it felt very
come and connected.
much like the last day of feminist hippie summer camp.
The opportunity to blow off all that boho workshop-
MOTHERSHIP is a hybrid of queer campout, fem-
ping and just focus on partying with a bunch of queers
inist conference, and festival. "I think we are onto
in the woods is a comforting aspect of MOTHERSHIP
something and I look forward to seeing how it all
For the lesbian who wants to hang around with other
unfolds;' Wise explains earnestly. "In this era of
lesbians in a cool setting but doesn't yearn to find her
pop-feminism, I want to move into this space before
inner spirit warrior, MOTHERSHIPis still a good time.
someone else does. I will never be able to execute it
"Babes Building Brands" was followed by a "Lioness"
all perfectly, especially without a huge team behind
workshop. Sponsored by the Lioness line of vibrators,
me or a corporation, but I genuinely care about cre-
which track your orgasm patterns, this workshop ed-
ating safe spaces for women and the progression of
ucated women on their orgasms. The presenters had
feminism." MOTHERSHIP is about female connection.
a tent with little charts of orgasm patterns and even
That's something.
offered attendees a test go at the vibrator in their "Masturbation" tent.
48 CURVE
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mothershipfest.com
FEB/MAR
IN THE CROSSFIRE
50 CURVE
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IN THE CROSSFIRE
IsThere
Room
in
#MeToo
forLesbians?
Queer women get sexually harassed and assaulted too.
VictoriaA. Brownworth
I
t seems unnecessary to state that
Times reported that the rumors were
nowhere in the #MeToo lexicon
in fact true: On the record, six wom-
does the word "lesbian" appear.
en, five named, one unnamed, had
Yet lesbian actor and comedian Tig
accused C.K. of sexual harassment,
Notaro has alluded to having been a
intimidation, and assault. The day
victim of such harassment. Notaro
after the news broke, C.K. acknowl-
severed all ties with the comedian
edged that the Times story was true
Louis C.K., who had been a producer
and issued an apology. Mere days
on her series OneMississippi, in Sep-
later, the FX network fired C.K. and re-
tember 2016, after what was referred
moved his name from all four shows
to as "an incident:'
he was associated with.
In August 2017, Notaro spoke to
In early December, Notaro was
The Daily Beast and Time magazine
asked about C.K. She said, 'The posi-
about the longstanding rumors that
tive is, the victims aren't told they are
Louis C.K. had sexually harassed and
lying anymore!' Every week, we hear
assaulted women comedians. Nota-
new revelations about the assault
ro was quoted as saying, "I think it's
and sexual harassment of women by
important to take care of that, to han-
high-placed men in entertainment,
dle that, because it's serious to be as-
politics, and journalism.
saulted. It's serious to be harassed.
Yet in all the revelations, the wom-
It's serious, it's serious, it's serious."
en we never heard from were lesbi-
The
urgency
in
Notaro's tone
ans. Were we expected to believe
should have been taken as a warn-
that there were no lesbians in any of
ing to more offenders than just Louis
these professions, at any level, and
C.K. In November 2017, the New York
that no lesbians had ever been sexu-
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 51
IN THE CROSSFIRE
ally harassed or assaulted?
whatever I was wearing by men who
Too much about actresses and not
Or is the reason that we haven't
had power over what assignments I
enough about hotel housekeepers."
heard from lesbians on this issue
was given, or not given, that I'm not
And, I would add, too much about
far more insidious? Is it that lesbi-
even sure from the vantage point
heterosexual women, not enough
ans don't dare reveal they are being
of three decades how much that
about lesbians. Some lesbians are
sexually abused or assaulted on the
abuse impacted my work. I know I
at the intersection of homophobic
job because they fear losing those
was always stressed. I know one of
discrimination and sexual harass-
jobs? Discrimination against lesbi-
my butch-presenting lesbian friends
mentbecause of the work they do.
ans on the job-any job-is rampant.
who worked at a sister newspaper
I spoke with several lesbians who
And under the Trump administration,
had a nervous breakdown and had to
work in construction. All have faced
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has
change jobs. When women talk now
serious sexual harassment, discrim-
stipulated that lesbians are not cov-
about how many of their employers
ination, and abuse. None has dared
ered by Title IX protections against
and editors exposed themselves or
to come forward, because each is the
such discrimination. Two cases of
forced them to have sex, it doesn't
only woman on her crew and each
women who were fired from their
surprise me in the least.
positions for being lesbians, Jameka
The intersection of anti-lesbian dis-
has heard throughout her tenure
that women just can't do this kind of
Evans, a hospital worker in Georgia,
crimination and sexual harassment
and Kimberly Hively, an adjunct pro-
and assault at work is the most ob-
In a recent study published in the
fessor in Indiana, are scheduled to
vious of Venn diagrams. As long as
journal Gender,Workand Organization,
be heard on appeal in 2018. Lambda
lesbians have no legal protections,
fully 88 percent of women working in
Legal is hoping to take their cases all
lesbians are always in any job on
construction reported having been
the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
sufferance. Lesbians can be fired at
sexually harassed and/or assaulted
The Me Too movement has trig-
any time, for no reason, with little to
on the job. Women working in restau-
gered memories for many of us
no recourse. In the cases brought by
rants (who among us hasn't worked
about our own experiences with sex-
Evans and Hively, lower courts found
at least temporarily as a server or
ual abuse and assault at work. As a
a direct correlation between their
in a kitchen?) and hospitals (like Ev-
20-something reporter, I faced daily
lesbianism and discrimination under
ans) faced more discrimination than
harassment from male co-workers. It
Title IX provisions, noting that they
most, due to the gendered nature
was the 1980s though, and Anita Hill
were being discriminated against
of the work. When the majority of
had yet to make her imprint on the
on the basis of sex because if they
lower-level staff are female and the
Zeitgeist with her bravely stated al-
hadn't been lesbians, they wouldn't
upper-level staff are male, the likeli-
legations against Clarence Thomas.
have been harassed. Both women
hood of harassment and abuse was
suffered sexual harassment at work
highest.
In many of the newsrooms where I
have worked over the past 30 years,
for
being gender-non-conforming,
I have been the only woman report-
butch-presenting lesbians.
work.
Women of color are most likely to
be working as staff in hotels, which
er. In the '80s and '90s, I was made
Journalist Barbara Ehrenreich told
is one of the most dangerously iso-
so aware of my femaleness, my
the Washington Post in November,
lating jobs for women. More than 90
blondeness, my perceived femme-
"Our current sex harassment dis-
percent of the women who cleaned
ness, the size of my breasts, and
cussion is woefully class-skewed.
rooms asserted that they had been
52 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
IN THE CROSSFIRE
sexually harassed and/or assaulted
Baldwin said, "Workplace harass-
by guests. Of the lesbians I spoke
ment remains an unacceptable reality
with who did this work in Las Vegas
that threatens the safety and econom-
Even if women are expected to ac-
and New York City, everyone had
ic security of far too many [women]
cept sexual abuse and/or assault as
had a guest expose himself to her,
working to build a better future for
part of their job description, many
grab her, and/or sexually assault
themselves and their families:'
women will find it difficult to get
into higher-paying jobs:'
These points by Baldwin are key
her in some way. None felt able to
In a statement on her website, Bald-
ahead in industries where men hold
go to management to report these
win noted that in 2016, "sex discrim-
all the power. As one lesbian artist
assaults, which, I was told, are per-
ination comprised over 30 percent
who worked as a graphic designer
ceived as just "part of the job." Men
of the charges filed with the Equal
for a small Philadelphia firm told me,
tipping housekeepers for service of-
Employment Opportunity Commis-
"My day starts with my shoulders being rubbed. If I'm lucky, that's where
ten thought that tip paid for touching
the women workers.
If lesbians complain about a hostile work environment, they can find
themselves perceived as the problem, not the person or persons who
perpetrated the abuse. Both Evans
and Hively were accused of having
a bad attitude when they filed grievances. This mirrors what actresses
and journalists have been told about
their reports of sexual abuse. The
Lesbians
canbe
firedatanytime,
fornoreason,
withlittletono
recourse.
it ends. But I have to log a certain
amount of time here before I can
move to the next job or my resume
looks like I'm the problem-like I can't
hold a job for more than a short time:'
A bartender in a boutique hotel asserted that there was always a "see
if you can touch the lesbian" aspect
to her job. "They know I'm gay, so it's
a game, a test to them. If they can
touch me, then maybe I'm not really gay and they can go further. It's a
difference is that the women in working-class or mid-level jobs are also at
sion (EEOC) under all the statutes
constant threat, and you're just sup-
a distinct economic disadvantage.
the agency enforces, with women
posed to act like it's a joke. But you
Losing your $8 an hour job, and hav-
filing more than 83 percent of all
never know how far they will try to
ing to find another one with only your
sexual harassment charges. Stud-
take it."
bad reference in hand, can be devas-
ies have shown that sexual harass-
The Me Too movement isn't dis-
tating and life-altering, and can even
ment of women, including unwanted
sipating any time soon. The lid
result in homelessness.
touching, grabbing, and stalking, is
has been torn off that Pandora's
Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), the
common in industries with low-wage
box. Women will continue to come
first openly gay person elected to
jobs, like restaurants and hospitality,
forward, men will continue to be
Congress, is attempting to address
as well as in male-dominated indus-
revealed as serial abusers. The
this class and gender divide. In Oc-
tries such as construction, public
question is, when will women who
tober 2017, Baldwin introduced the
safety, manufacturing, farming, and
aren't in high-profile jobs have their
Fair Employment Protection Act,
the high-tech industry. Harassment
concerns addressed? And when, if
co-signed with Representative Rosa
in male-dominated industries oper-
ever,will the experiences of lesbians
DeLauro(D-CT-3).
ates as a barrier to women's entry
be heard?
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 53
T R U E
Summer
Allow yourself to be inspired by leading
queer women. Hear the voices of modern
female executives, artists, activists, and
the celebrities who engage us.
MUST READ
Revolutionary,
Gifted
andBlack
Meet one of the queer founders of Black
Lives Matter, Patrisse Khan-Cullors.
AgundaOkeyo
It stands to reason that when Patrisse KhanCullors, a founder of Black Lives Matter, sat down
with her co-author, asha bandele, to write a memoir
of this burgeoning nonviolent movement, the subject of who gets to label whom would inspire their
title, When They Call You a Terrorist: a Black Lives
Matter Memoir. The love-drenched narrative style
of this powerful memoir charts the course of KhanCullors's life, growing up in Los Angeles; hers is a
narrative pierced personally by headline issues that
are often glossed over, even in liberal circles, issues
like structural poverty, the war on drugs, the war
on gangs, mass incarceration, unequal education,
and police brutality. Although Khan-Cullers, a queer
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 55
MUST READ
:.
Patrisse Khan-Cullars
56
CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
MUST READ
woman and the recent recIpIent of
In the summer of 2016, Black Lives
the Sydney Peace Prize, is certainly a
Matter
victorious example of how to survive
(and have since been exonerated) for
racism, classism, sexism, and heter-
inciting violence, while conservative
onormativity
in America, she knows
(SLM) activists
were sued
networks like Fox News labeled them
all too well that many others did not
a terrorist
or are still fighting to get free. The
of 2017, the FBI released a warning
organization.
memoir is a compelling series of sto-
about what they termed "black sep-
ries that sketch out the life of a black
aratist
girl child who becomes a woman,
citing SLM but stoking the fires of
told in her own words, using her own
anti-black racism, no doubt stirred up
life to illustrate what it means to be
by the Trump administration.
black, poor, and socially conscious
I asked Khan-Cullers why she and
extremists;'
In the fall
not specifically
When
in the 1980s, '90s, and 2000s, while
asha bandele chose When They Call
working on building the community
You a Terrorist as their title, she said,
and safety that most people long for.
"Growing up in Los Angeles in a working-class suburb, in the middle of the
war on gangs and the war on drugs,
really shaped what I understood and
what would eventually be called Black
Lives Matter." She goes on to say how
surreal, confusing, and disturbing it
was to have SLM labeled "terrorist;'
though, she says, "I was clear; this
label 'terrorist' is similar to the label
that activists
and organizers were
given in the '60s and '70s as 'communists; so I understood this was part of
a historical legacy in which this country deems black people, in particular
when we fight for our rights and survival, as criminal."
But before we further discuss SLM
as an international movement founded by three women, Khan-Cullers,
Alicia Garza, and Opal Tometi, we
should take a moment here to recognize that two of the three women
are queer, Khan-Cullers and Garza.
Also, we should recognize that it has
often been women, the mothers, sisters, and wives of slain boys and men
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 57
MUST READ
such as Emmett Till and Trayvon Mar-
liced culture of Los Angeles, both in
tin, who have taken up the charge to
and out of school; the fact that from
fight injustice. As Khan-Cullers tells
early adolescence, black girls begin to
me, "Black women have always been
experience harassment by police and
the architects of societies and move-
school
ments. To try to marginalize us in this
found that nationally black girls were
officials.
Crenshaw's study
movement is wrong and it's a myth.
suspended six times more than white
We can look at people like Fannie
girls, while black boys were suspend-
Lou Hamer and Ella Baker, who didn't
ed three times as often as white boys.
receive the praise or the recognition
Furthermore, in urban centers such as
they deserved because they were of-
New York City and Boston, the relative
ten competing with their male coun-
risk for disciplinary
terpoints. [But] they in fact shaped
black girls relative to white girls was
the very debate this country was hav-
10 and 11 times more, respectively.
ing around building black power, the
In both cities black boys where six
Democratic Party, and how we look
and eight times more likely to receive
action against
at black, poor southern voters ...We
disciplinary action in schools, respec-
three women are the visible leaders
tively. The fact of the matter is that
of this movement [because] we have
black girls are extremely vulnerable to
a better understanding of what has
punitive treatment in schools and we
happened in history and how black
don't talk about it.
women have been erased in history.
In a chapter called "Twelve;' Khan-
History gets told differently when we
Cullors recounts that "the first time
I was arrested, I am twelve years
are not visible."
In 2015, Kimberle Crenshaw, a law
old." A bright child, she didn't attend
professor at Columbia and Stanford,
school
coined the hashtag #SayHerName to
munity, but commuted to a middle
in her working-class
com-
commemorate black women killed by
school "where the gifted kids go." But
police, beginning with Sandra Bland,
because she had low math and sci-
who was stopped for a traffic viola-
ence grades one year, she had to go
tion that year and was found dead in
to summer school, which was taught
her Texas jail cell three days later. A
at her neighborhood middle school.
chapter of the Khan-Cullors's book is
While at the local school, she forgot
dedicated to this issue and to Sandra
herself and behaved like her peers at
Bland's life. However, before #Say-
her gifted school, who smoke weed in
HerName, Crenshaw released a star-
the bathroom before class and walk
tling study of black girls in schools,
about freely, with no police presence
entitled Black Girls Matter: Pushed Out,
to speak of. One day during summer
Overpoliced, and Underprotected. The
school, Khan-Cullers smoked a joint
December 2014 study revealed a truth
in the bathroom. Someone must have
that Khan-Cullers had personally ex-
said something, because two days
perienced as a child in the heavily po-
later a police officer came into her
58
CURVE
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FEB/MAR
------------------------------------
MUST READ
"Black
women
havebeenerased
inhistory.
History
getstold
differently
when
wearenot
visible."
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 59
MUST READ
class, handcuffed her in the front of
za's Facebook page, and along with
the room, and took her to the dean.
two friends launch a movement. She
Would this public shaming have hap-
spends considerable
pened in her gifted school, with fewer
ing the early moments of Black Lives
black and brown faces in the class-
Matter which I imagine will inspire the
room and more parents in a higher tax
next generation
bracket? Probably not.
It's fair to say that the very detailed,
Khan-Cullors also recounts how her
time discuss-
of revolutionaries.
emotional, and nuanced stories that
older brothers Paul and Monte began
Khan-Cullors tells of her family, and
getting violently stopped and frisked
her chosen family, offer a harrowing
by local police at ages 13 and 11, re-
and deeply humanizing picture of an-
spectively. She writes, "There are no
ti-black state-sanctioned
green spaces, no community centers
America.
violence in
to shoot hoops in, no playgrounds
Along with her co-author, asha ban-
with handball courts, no parks for
dele, Patrisse Khan-Cullars, now the
children to build castles in, so they
mother of a black son and a partner
make the alleyway their secret place ...
in a healthy queer relationship, seeks
It's from behind [a] gate that I watch
the police roll up on my brothers and
to send us a message. When They
Call You a Terrorist: a Black Lives Mat-
their friends, not one of whom is over
ter Memoir oddly reminds me of the
the age of 14. I cannot cry and I can-
feeling I had when I first watched The
not scream and I cannot breathe."
Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls
In many ways, When They Call You a
in Love. Certainly, the memoir and the
Terrorist is an insider's view, through
movie are wildly different in tone, but
the lives of a love-rich and cash-poor
as narratives of queer life in America
family, of the school-to-prison
pipe-
there is a similar kind of magic. I say
line, police brutality, and economic
this with the utmost respect for the
inequality.
heart-wrenching trials and triumphs
The lack of human dignity that
of Khan-Cullors's life, but her narrative
Khan-Cullors witnesses in the treat-
of growing up queer and black, and
ment of her brother Monte, a young
becoming a woman and a revolution-
man thrust into the criminal justice
ary is a gift for those who remember
system and brutalized for his mental
the wonders of growing up, despite it
illness, the trials of her pious mother,
all: the love of family, the excitement
and the pragmatism of her brother
of first loves, the courage of walking
Paul, who is a man before he's a boy,
your own path, and the satisfaction
sparks her activism. Having graduat-
of building your own community or
ed from an arts and social justice high
chosen family. Perhaps I'm caught
school, it is while she was paying her
in the foggy memory of that film,
way through college that Khan-Cullors
but I'll never forget how it made me
begins to show signs of becoming
feel, and this memoir had a very sim-
the woman who would one day type
ilar though profoundly deeper effect.
#BlacklivesMatter
A feeling of love.
60
CURVE
I
on
FEB/MAR
Alicia
Gar-
LI V I NG
Fall
Embrace a more expansive view of
beauty. From androgynous fashion to
diverse body image, distinctive looks to
dress a beauty and a butch.
IMAGE MAKERS
Women
oftheWorld
International photographer
Mihaela N oroc captures
the beauty of diversity.
ISTANBUL,TURKEY·
"Thiswoman was in an LGBTPrideparade.In a country that
becomesmore and more conservative,the LGBTcommunity here faces a lot of
challengesbut these braveand courageouspeopleare standing up for their rights."
62 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
IMAGE MAKERS
HowdidTheAtlasofBeautybegin?
real beauty means being yourself. There's
In 2013, a trip to Ethiopia changed my
a lot of pressure on women to look a cer-
perspective. Right away, I was fascinated
tain way, so sometimes it's a struggle to
by the women I saw during that vacation.
be yourself, to make yourself accepted as
Some were living in tribes, where nudity
you are. But I hope this project will encour-
was normal. Others were part of conser-
age more women, and also men, to follow
vative communities, covering their heads.
their own path, to explore their own beau-
And still others, in the big cities, were em-
ty, without feeling constrained.
bracing modern life. Most of them were
struggling and working hard, sometimes
facing discrimination as women. But in
Whydoyouphotograph
onlywomen?
When I started in photography 16 years
these harsh environments, they were
ago, my first subjects were my mother
shining like stars-with
dignity, strength,
and my sister. Over the years I tried differ-
and beauty. If there's so much diversity
ent types of photography, but in the end I
and so many stories in just one country,
realized that as an artist I have to focus
what about the rest of the world? I realized
on a niche, to explore it, to understand it,
that the wonderful women of our planet
to develop my skills around it. And this
deserve much more attention, and that
niche for me was photographing women,
true beauty is usually unnoticed. In that
because this was the thing that made me
moment, I started to dream, and found the
curious, that, indirectly, made me discov-
strength to break from my comfort zone,
er myself, as a woman. There's so much
quit my day job, and start this project.
pressure on women to look a certain way,
Whatis"beauty"
foryou?
everywhere in the world, and there's also
so much discrimination against them, and
For me, "beauty" is "diversity." It is much
I realized that an honest project about
more than what we often see today in
women of the world, about their struggles
mass media. If you put the words "beauti-
and dreams, is really necessary today.
ful woman" into Google, you'll mostly see
very similar images of seductive women.
But on the streets of the world, beauty has
Whatisyouraimwiththisbook?
I want to honor the wonderful women of
many more facets. We just have to open
our world. To show that their beauty has
our eyes and see it. In the end, beauty is in
no bounds, so acceptance, love, and com-
our differences, it's about being yourself,
passion shouldn't either. I hope this book
natural and authentic, not about trends,
will get into many homes around the world,
race, or social status.
Whatmakesa womanbeautiful?
All women are beautiful in their own
convincing more people that diversity is a
treasure and not a trigger for conflicts and
hate. We are very different but at the same
time we are all part of the same family.
way. In The Atlas of Beauty, women don't
play roles, they are not perfect. But they
are natural and authentic, proving that
TheAtlas of Beautyis on Amazon.com
FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 63
IMAGE MAKERS
SALVADOR
DEBAHIA,BRAZIL:"Rafaelaand Obaxtold me about how difficult it is
sometimes to be both black and lesbian.But their relationshipseemedstronger
than the prejudicethey face."
64 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
IMAGE MAKERS
PARIS,FRANCE:"/ met Lucilleand Amelie during an LGBTprotest. Theyboth felt
that the intoleranceagainst sexualminorities is growingyear by year in their city"
FEB/MAR
I CURVE 65
s:
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G)
°'
°'
n
C
m
"'T'1
m
OJ
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s::
)>
;;:o
Reprinted
with permission
fromAtlasof Beautyby MihaelaNoroc,copyright(c)2017.
Published
byTenSpeedPress,a divisionof PenguinRandomHouse,Inc.Photographs
(c)2017by MihaelaNoroc
m
s:
)>
:,::::
m
:::0
V,
IMAGE MAKERS
MILAN,ITALY:"Giuliahas felt androgynous-male and female-since she
was a child. Now she has this word tattooed on her chest,in Greek."
SALVADOR,
BRAZIL:"Dandarais a transgenderwoman.As an adolescent,she started to understandthat she was very different from the other boys,includingher twin
brother.Although she was born a boy,her total essenceis one of a girl."
FEB/MAR
I CURVE 67
CURVE
LIVING
TRUE
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FEB/MAR
I
CURVE 69
MUSIC
I TALKS
-"'
u
"S
(_')
<l.)
>
u5 ___________
_
<l.)
70 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
MUSIC I TALKS
Outofthe
Ordinary
Up close and
personal with Alison Moyet.
MadeleineGray
FEB/MAR I CURVE 71
MUSIC
I TALKS
S
and "Don't Go."She then launched a solo career. Chart-top-
cover every day. Initially, it was
ping albums including Alf and Hoodoo ensued. After years of dif-
that as a child I was raised to pull
ficulties with music label Sony over artistic control, Moyet moved
a cart. Someone born to French
to Sanctuary Records, where she experienced a renaissance. Her
peasant sensibilities in an English
album Hometime went gold in the UK. In June 2017, she released
new town, I found myself more ag-
Other to rave reviews. She's always been a fantastic LGBTQally,
gressive and hardier than many of
and ahead of her concert in Melbourne, Australia at the arena
my peers. Later, I was considered
inger-songwriter Alison Moyet first found fame in the 1980s
as half of the electronic duo Vaz, with hits like "Only You"
Howdoyouidentify?
There are more ways that I dis-
named after former tennis star Margaret Court, Moyet publicly de-
a dyke, before I knew what a dyke
nounced Court's homophobia.
was. I was physical and argumentative. I was assumed to be unapproachable and taciturn. I was unable to focus at school or to follow
the path prescribed to us. I was not
a young person many people wanted to live beside.
Whendidyoubegintorealizethat
notfittingincouldbea benefit?
I never didn't want to fit in, I just
accepted it as a natural state. Later, when I could decipher the rules,
I understood how to mimic them.
When I then recognized that many
people were more vulnerable than
me, and without useful brawn, I
found myself more adept at tenderness. I'm as free as I have ever
been. I have never been free, and
so now, no less so, no more. I know
burdens, how to carry them, and
how to build muscle on them. Age
makes you grateful for the pitfalls.
Glad of the separation.
Howdoyoubalancethedesire
tofitinwiththeimperative
to
standout?
72 CURVE
I
FEB/MAR
MUSIC
is true of Other. Guy [Sigsworth's]
ry. The denominations
colors that gift us an easier ride.
sensibilities blend the tracks son-
church and state not conflated. A
That I couldn't spell or punctuate
ically, and my voice and lyrical ap-
woman not dressed for a red car-
reliably, in the '60s, marked me as
proach make of them a connected
pet. When you want to investigate
We have codes, and shapes, and
I spend. A
a child "of no discernible talent."
body of work. Each piece is more
what makes you choose, you need
My mother, for whom grammar
of a short story than a chapter of
to direct your attention
was the one aspect of her life she
a whole.
things that are yours to choose.
could control, viewed it very dimly
deconstruct myself relentlessly. It
You'renow56.Manyolder
womenspeakaboutthe social
invisibility
that agingbrings.In
an interviewwiththe Guardian,
youcitedmiddle-age
female
invisibility
as somethingthat
youfindto bepositive.
is not unusual to me that I want to
I was always remarkable. Even
that past participles and pronouns
needed defining time and again,
and she liked me where others did
not. I didn't opt for Otherness. Most
of us don't. We find it out about
ourselves. Later we celebrate it. I
understand what shapes others. I
as a tot.
I have been hugely
found myself attached to a route
self-conscious and have spent far
that was enviable, eventually. As
too long in my own head. When I
a youth, I wanted very much the
have glimpses of a success of my
norm. Obviously, now I recognize
own grading, a well-written
that the desire to lift yourself else-
or an insightful
where is entirely normal. I never
ed to giggling heights. When I am
needed more. Belligerence took
without these things, I am a peas-
me there, coincidentally.
ant with an open field. Being old
Thealbumworksas a cohesive
wholeandeachtracksworks
independently.
Whatlinksthem?
I think you will find all my work,
in terms of the songs, does that.
Right back to Yazoo. Everything
we did was only a distant
rela-
tion to the next, bar maybe two
or three songs. The voice and the
electronics married them as a collection, but they came from dis-
song
review, I am lift-
to the
Before you can question someone
else's identity, you have to be familiar with your own. I don't want
to mimic. I shut out voices. I don't
know where we are, where any of
us is heading. I have no belief that
our lives are sacrosanct. I see no
emptying of the swamps, just the
bottom feeders stirred up and on
the surface.
Allaroundthe world,women
continueto besilenced.Doyou
seeyourselfas havinga social
responsibility,
as a songwriter
whois alsoa woman?
Not as a songwriter
the responsibility,
do I feel
or even as a
enough to understand that I am
woman with a platform,
never more important than I am ir-
the woman and able matriarch I
relevant, and when dead am dead,
am, regardless. When I feel these
as everything that dies. I like the
slights as keenly as I do and I
endings of all things.
YourmotherwasEnglish,
your
fatherFrench.You've
spoken
beforeaboutnottryingto Americanize.HowdoyouseeBritish
identityshiftingin a post-Brexit,
Trumpian
world?
parate places, and we never tried
It started for me as a simple
to find a theme. For me, the same
thing. My own accent. My histo-
but as
see my daughters still having to
face the same privations,
and
indeed women of the world [experience]
far
more
oppression
than anything I have known, it is
not even a consideration
I need
to weigh. Yes. I join my voice to
the argument as vividly as I can.
alisonmoyet.com
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WhyWeLove
Wynonna
Earp
Tune in and catch the stars at ClexaCon 2018.
LisaTedesco
74 CURVE
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S
ince its debut back in April
heir to the Earp curse, and town
without the fear of the "Bury Your
2016, Wynonna Earp has
outcast from her troubled past. So
Gays" trope that has plagued ca-
proven itself to be an ally
this show already wins because,
ble television for decades now.
to the LGBTQ community, uniting
female fandoms across the globe.
A lot of these television
hello, chick with a big ass gun!
pro-
In the beginning Wynonna is
grams entice LGBTQ viewers into
hesitant and skeptical of her Earp
watching their show when they in-
es upon pages upon pages to get
duties.
and super
troduce new queer characters only
you all caught up with what's hap-
smart younger sister, Waverly Earp
to kill them off after a season or
It would honestly take me pag-
Insert:
cute
pening in the quaint little demonic
(Dominique
Provost-Chalkley)
two. But the producers of Wynon-
town of Purgatory, USA so I will
and Special Agent Dolls (Shami-
na Earp have seen the incredible
attempt to blast through some of
er Anderson) of the Black Badge
impact the relationship
the important
Division (a super secret govern-
Waverly and Nicole (ship name
the entire show is important and
ment
#WayHaught) has sparked.
relevant, so you can get a sense of
paranormal, demonic and evil/un-
what you're dealing with here. I'm
explained phenomena), Wynonna
starts right in the beginning of
honestly hoping that by this point,
begins to hunt down the revenants
season one in episode two when
most of you have hopped onto
that raise havoc in their tiny town.
the new deputy in town goes in to
the Earper Express and are riding
Did I mention Doc Holliday (Tim
get a cup of coffee from Shorty's,
bits, even though
task
force
dealing
with
The #WayHaught
Purgatory's
between
relationship
local watering
hole
Badass Highway with me and the
Rozon) also is totally
rest of the fandom!
and comes back from living in a
where Wyatt Earp used to drink,
immortal
well (legit a freaking well, like for
where Waverly works. It's obvious
Beau Smith, the SyFy hit follows
water) for the past century to help
Nicole's intentions
the legend of the Earp curse in
save the day-while
also being
with Waverly and get a feel for her.
Purgatory. Wyatt Earp was one
super-in-love with Wynonna? No?
Although Waverly is currently dat-
of the most famous lawmen in
Well, yes that happens too!
Based on the comic series by
our history (actual history!) and
were to flirt
ing, Champ (Dylan Koroll), it's clear
Apart from being an amazing-
Waverly is smitten
with him was a curse: that all the
ly conceived piece of television,
Haught's
outlaws he killed, now called reve-
Wynonna
Earp brings
suave and charismatic swagger.
forth
an
adorable
with Officer
dimples
and
nants, would come back from hell
authentic
same-sex relationship
Without giving too much away,
after each Earp heir died. The only
between Waverly and the town's
season one slowly brings these
way to stop them from destroying
deputy, Nicole Haught (Kat Bar-
two gorgeous specimens together
the town, running amuck in every
rell). We see their feelings for each
in one pivotal scene where Waver-
new decade and putting a damp-
other completely blossom before
ly visits Nicole at the sheriff's sta-
er on the quality of life of the Earp
our very eyes all throughout sea-
tion with one thing on her mind.
family is to shoot them between
son one and two. Thanks to show-
Not that (yet). She confesses her
the eyes with
revolver,
runner and writer, Emily Andras,
feelings to a bewildered Haught
Peacemaker.
previously of the acclaimed SyFy
who was under the assumption
Jump to present day and we have
series Lost Girl, we finally get to
that this "we're only friends" thing
Wynonna (Melanie Scrofano), the
see a valid and true relationship
was actually going to stick. A su-
Wyatt's
FEB/MAR
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POPCORN
per endearing speech is given by a
nervous Waverly which ends with
one another.
Season two
to be a super brain and bad ass
is also just
an
a steamy little make out session
amazing array of truly remarkable
on the boss' couch. I mean, I didn't
women. Wynonna gets a pregnan-
rewind that at all or anything.
cy storyline written into the plot
(good) revenant. Are you keeping
up?
This season has proved to be a
rollercoaster
ride of emotions for
The amazing thing about the
because real life Melanie Scrofano
everyone in the cast. Each charac-
#WayHaught relationship is that it
had announced she was pregnant
ter had their own storyline which, in
matters to so many people on the
before the season even began
some way, complimented everyone
planet. After shows like The 100 or
shooting. Scrofano shot the entire-
else's. It ended with so many ques-
Buffy killed off our representation,
ty of season two pregnant, all the
tions to be answered and, HOORAY,
Wynonna Earp is creating a safe
way up until the nine month mark,
we have a season three coming in
space for our queer little hearts.
while still playing the ass-kicking
mid-2018 (I'm not sure I can wait
Earp heir that she is. This truly
that long).
At the ClexaCon convention in
Las Vegas, Nevada last
March
our beloved showrunner spoke to
a massive crowd surrounding the
#WayHaught
panel.
showed the incredible power and
strength of women.
Season two also brought the in-
So, what did we learn from this
rant of mine?
1. Emily Andras knows her sh*t
She spoke
troduction of two new characters
of having a high respect for the
to the gang, both of which happen
3. Women KICK ass
LGBTQ community and wanting to
to be on Team Queer and both of
4. Wynonna Earp creates a
do them justice. She also said that
which happen to be super ador-
platform for strong and positive
writing
a same-sex relationship
able. Jeremy (Varun Saranga) is
representation
needed to be true and authentic.
a super brain who works for the
Every relationship
goes through
2. #WayHaught is endgame
Black Badge Division as a lab rat.
Season one is available now to
rough patches and struggles so
His main purpose is to be wicked
stream on Netflix while season two
Andras made sure to incorporate
smarter than everyone else. Rosi-
is available On Demand from your
these
#Way-
ta (Tamara Duarte) is the sexy bar
cable carriers.
Haught scenario without leading
matron at the now Doc Holliday
to the death of one of them. This
owned Shorty's who also happens
aspects
into
the
April at ClexaCon, Katherine Barrell and Tamara Duarte are both
featured guests in a stunning ClexaCon Featured Guests lineup.
In season two we see the relationship
of Waverly and Nicole
blossom to something incredibly
strong. Although they have their
bumps (there are bunches) and
curve balls thrown at them it's
pretty clear how much they love
76
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syfy.com
POPCORN
Carmina
AtClexacon
Our two favorite web-series starlets are ready to dish.
LisaTedesco
>,
:::,
..0
en
QJ
j
if)
Last we left off, the #Hollstein ship
was makingtheirway out of a cavernous
what are they doing in those five years
were remarkably comfortable to wear,'
post-earthending?
says Negovanlis.''There was, however,
hole in the groundafter savingthe Silas
''Theyfinallyget to seeParis;'says Ne-
Universitycampus and the entire world
govanlis."Onceit was all said and done
from eminent doom. The Carmi/lagirls,
they got to travel.Carmillaalso became
The film also stars Dominique Pro-
LauraHollis (EliseBauman)and Carmil-
supersupportiveof Laura'scareer.She's
vost-Chalkley,known for playing Waverly
la Karnstein(NatashaNegovanlis)have
just enjoyinghumanlife'.'
a bit of a power struggle as to who was
leading'.'
Earpon WynonnaEarp.This time she plays
seen some roughtimes over the series'
Duringtheir romance,Carmillabegins
three epic seasonson the KindaTV You-
to feel the urge for blood again,and the
who's come back to clean up looseends.
Tube channel,but through all the heart-
prospectof re-vampingbecomesa real-
She also gets to show off her sexy,au-
Ell, Carmilla's centuries old ex-girlfriend
ache, battles and quirky sentiments,it
ity. Negovanlissays,"She beginsto feel
thentic, British accent. ''This isn't a love
was obviousthat thesetwo were meant
what an addict feels. After all, she was
triangle;'says Bauman."Ell doesn'ttry to
to be together.I was fortunate enough
a blood addict for three hundredyears'.'
sabotage their relationship.She's trying
to hang with the Carmi/laladiesand dis-
Baumanadds: "It starts out very bright-
to figurethings out from whereher old life
cuss the releaseof The Carmi/laMovie,
eyedand bushy-tailed.Youcan see Lau-
left off. Lauraand Ell'scharacterssort of
wherethey reprisetheir famous roles.
ra shift to experiencingactualfear.'
mirroreachother in a sense'.'
Thefilm beginswith the dynamicduo
TheCarmi/laMoviehastaken on some
in their cozy relationshipfive yearsafter
exciting new endeavors.If you caught
they vanquished the apocalypse and
the trailer you will notice changes in
some sexy lady-lovingaction. TheCarmi/la
Carmillabecamea bonafide human.So
scenery,action, and ball gowns! ''They
Movieis the whole package.
Badass female leads, masquerade
balls, perhaps a fight scene or two and
FEB/MAR
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CURVE 77
TRAVELBUG
GoWest
GoSweden
Take a Scandinavian
seafaring adventure.
MerrynJohns
78 CURVE
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0
nly an hour out of Gothenburg, the capital of West
Sweden, nature loving wom-
en can venture along the coast to
sample seafood, scenery, and Swedish culture in the raw.
Approximately the size of Belgium,
West Sweden is its own destination.
This trip, I experienced the province
of Bohuslan on the picturesque and
rocky coast that extends North to
Norway border. The Bohuslan coast
is distinguished by its granite boulders and outcrops which create an
otherworldly
landscape in muted
greys, pinks or gold at sunset against
a slate-and-sapphire colored sea.
Stark Swedish beauty at its best.
Unspoiled by mass tourism, the
Bohuslan Coast has long drawn adventurous souls to it-rock carvings
date back to 800 B.C., and in 1731
the Swedish East India Company
was founded and the area became a
centre for fish production, shipping,
trade, and resorts featuring bathing
and amusement parks. It's also a
place of mystery: Sweden's bestselling crime author, Camilla Lackberg,
comes from a small summer resort
town in Vastra Gotaland.
This portion of the Swedish coast
boasts 8,000 islands and natural
harbors, little red cottages and lighthouses. Famed for its herring, today
C
Q.)
"D
Q.)
(f)
it's more known for mussel farming
in the cold, clear waters and when
in season, prawns, oysters, lobsters,
------°>
·u;
and langoustines (also known as
Norwegian lobsters).
This is a pescatarian's paradise,
where the day boat catch ends up as
your fine dining experience. Swedes
believe in everyday luxury-not opulence, but rather simplicity and freshness equals sophistication. Everyone
should have something good on their
table. That's the Swedish belief.
If you're a fan of Swedish-American screen legend Ingrid Bergman
and want to understand why she always had that healthy glow, a charisma befitting the feminine divine, and
advanced politics regarding women's
and children's rights, you're not too
far from the island where she spent
25 consecutive summers in a cottage in Dannholmen in the Fjallbacka
archipelago.
Here's what I did on my West
Swedish adventure. About a 40-minute drive from Gothenburg to Lyckorna I embarked upon a mussel
"safari" at Musselbaren (the mussel
bar). My small group met up with
Skipper Janne to sail the fjords to
the mile-wide mussel farms where he
explained the sustainable practice of
farming blue mussels, and why, of all
things, they're a good and delicious
choice of sustenance. Back at the
Musselbaren, Janne cooked up the
catch with wine and herbs, served
with freshly baked bread and fries
and we enjoyed our lunch in a quintessentially Swedish environment.
An hour's drive to Nosund is the
family-owned Nosund Havshotell, sit-
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uated on rolling lawns that go right
During high summer I can imagine
to the edge of the sea. At the begin-
relaxing on the terrace or strolling
once was herring and now is the
ning of the last century, Nosund was
the manicured gardens and possibly
very chic Salt & Sill, Sweden's first
a holiday resort where folks came
even taking a refreshing dip!
floating hotel. The property consists
of Kladesholmen. Its pride and joy
to enjoy steaming seaweed baths
To continue the artistic theme we
and hearty, home-cooked food. To-
headed to Pilane sculpture park on
pontoons affording sparkling vistas
day, Nosund Havshotell carries on
the beautiful and windswept Tjorn
over Bohuslan's outer archipelago.
the tradition offering self-contained,
Island. We wandered up hill and
Decorated with nautical simplicity
simple accommodation and a spa
down dale through a majestically
the cabins on the lower level have
with views and a genuine seaside at-
curated collection of modern envi-
ladders that descend right into the
mosphere. After soaking in the heat-
ronmental sculptures. It's a signifi-
sea. On an upper level is an outdoor
ed pool, I took the ladder down and
cant site not just because of these
hot tub and sauna for relaxing and
dunked myself in the bracing, briny
imposing artworks; ancient tribes
socializing. Explore the town at sun-
sea. To actually get out on the water
chose this rocky, elevated spot as
set and soak up the atmosphere of
I took a guided kayaking tour with
a meeting place and today you can
this fishing community. Then tuck
Kayak in Grundsund and the delight-
still see 90 'judgment circles' and
into dinner at Salt & Sill's excellent
fully outdoorsy Christina lngemars-
raised stones dating back to the
restaurant. Yes, West Sweden is a
dotter. We enjoyed coffee break or
Iron Age.
catch in more ways than one.
ftka in our kayaks, surrounded by
This being Sweden, of course art
the stunning beauty of Boshulan's
is all around you even when you're
archipelago and its rocky forested
up a hill or by the sea. The spartan
coastline. All that paddling made
and stunningly designed Nordiska
the three-course dinner and wine at
Akvarellmuseet (the Nordic Water-
Nosund Havshotell extra delicious.
color Museum) exhibits artists such
From there it was an easy one-
as local legend Arne lsacsson and
hour drive to Ladfabriken, which
touring exhibitions. This museum
means "fish box factory." This gay-
was environmentally certified
owned and operated B&B has been
2014 and the building blends in with
in
lovingly converted from a very hum-
nature to tranquil effect. It is a local
ble structure into an impeccably-de-
landmark that sends out a positive
signed abode full of hand-selected
message of cultural diversity, inspi-
artworks and curios. Located on
ration, heritage and accessibility. At
the edge of the Skagerrak Sea in
Restaurant Vatten (water in Swed-
Bohuslan, Ladfabriken offers four
ish) lunch consists of fresh, locally
distinctive rooms, each with a pri-
caught seafood and views of the
vate bathroom. It was heaven to
gentle Swedish light bouncing off
relax in a midcentury designer chair,
the water.
chat with the handsome and charm-
Only 15 minutes down the road is
ing hosts, and gaze out at the sea.
another island and the quaint town
80 CURVE
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of six two-story structures built on
westsweden.com
GO
If YOU
Summer, June to August, can be
cool especially at sundown, so bring
a warm jacket and hat. To dine well
and inexpensively, make your main
meal lunch and eat for less than you
pay at dinner. Alcohol can be pricey
unless you drink moderately or shop
at the state-approved liquor store
(Systembolaget). Tipping is not expected although it is customary to
"round up" the bill. Getting around is
easiest by car but speed limits are
enforced and roundabouts are used
rather than traffic lights. If you don't
wish to drive it's also possible to see
a lot by ferry, rail and tram.
paradise.
WestSwedenis a pescatarian's
TRAVELBUG
C
a.,
""CJ
a.,
5'
U)
A greatwayto experience
the coastalsceneryis by kayak.
82 CURVE
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Winter
Get cozy with inspiring and beautifully
photographed food, drink and travel
stories, appearing alongside seasonal
recipes and holiday ideas.
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