Chitra Ganesh’s Coloring Book Resists Queer Erasure, Hyperallergic
A cropped illustration from page 16 of Chitra Ganesh's Queer Power! coloring book (all images courtesy the artist)
Queer Power! A Time Travelling Coloring Book honors LGBTQI+ activists and cultural icons.
April 4 by Rhea Nayyar
Artist Chitra Ganesh’s Queer Power! coloring book encourages us to work mindfully and remember who we love, who we have lost, and who we can look to for guidance during this legislative siege that’s chipping away at trans and women’s rights with each passing day. Using black and white illustrations, Ganesh manifests queer futurities through an examination of resistance, activism, and connectivity within New York’s marginalized communities and beyond.
Queer Power! was born from the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art’s (LLM) annual QUEERPOWER installation commission curated by Riya Lerner in October 2020. Ganesh installed illustrative panels in the windows of the museum’s façade that celebrated NYC’s queer histories and paid homage to the Indigenous stewards of Lenapehoking (now the greater tristate area, spilling over into Delaware and Connecticut) as well as the 19th-century Black settlement of Seneca Village (now Central Park). The research-based installation was organized while people were still avoiding museums and other indoor venues due to COVID-19. Therefore, Ganesh and the LLM’s staff opted to activate the museum’s exterior with historical and political context and complimented the window panels with audio interviews from the historical figures and contemporary activists represented in the project.
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