BEDTIME STORIES v1: BOOGIE INTIMACY is an installation and photo series that explores Raphael Sanchez’s assimilation and integration into his queer nightlife community as a whole, from the perspective of an observer, a wallflower of sorts, that removes himself from the world while he stands astride its heart. The installation is comprised of still photography and projection mapped 3D animated gifs, “wiggles” if you will, and are all captured on 35mm film. The wiggles act as moving fragments between the still images, allowing the viewer to experience that electrifying moment with the subject matter and the photographer.
“With disco at its best, dancing is both individual and collective. You might connect with the stranger dancing next to you at a given moment, but its not a couples thing; it’s boogie intimacy; which can be very intense and sexy; but it’s usually limited to dancing together for a while before each of you dissolves back into the crowd or returns to your “partner.”
(Douglas Crimp, DISSS-CO (A Fragment), First edition 2015 MoMA PS1)
In 1970s New York, the discotheques were a commonplace for queer men to meet and dance to good disco and popular music. These discos adapted a pariah culture, being located in out-of-the-way neighbourhoods in quickly refurbished spaces with the distinct feeling being susceptible to a bust at any moment. Inspired by the works of Nan Goldin, Danny Nicoletta, and Wolfgang Tillmans, Sanchez aspires to capture this “boogie intimacy” within the confines of the queer-friendly spaces.
Raphael Sanchez – BEDTIME STORIES v1: BOOGIE INTIMACY at OCAD University, Toronto, Ontario 2018