Whereas there could also be a spate of youthful photographers capturing Black queer folks today – Ajamu identify checks Burnice Mulenga, Cameron Ogbodu, Campbell Addy, Alexander Ikhide, and Matthew Arthur Williams – his work stands out for its unapologetic eroticism. The mainstreaming of queer tradition and pornography has made the visible language of sexuality extra seen; when he started working, societal homophobia and stigma round HIV/AIDS led to censorship of same-sex male erotica.
Today, we dwell in a tradition the place erect penises are shared freely on Grindr and kink imagery is disseminated over platforms just like the kink-friendly relationship app Feeld. “I believe that a number of the work from the 90s, if we quick ahead 20, 30 years, should not as intense as they felt then,” Ajamu says. “It’s a completely different context for the work now as a result of the dialog has shifted. However we nonetheless don’t see Black and kink and that’s the distinction.”
The present’s title, The Patron Saint of Darkrooms, is a play on the photographer’s darkroom, but additionally the darkroom as a cruising house – a dimly lit room one may discover behind a homosexual bar or membership the place males can search intercourse, often with strangers. For Ajamu, there are similarities between the 2: the scent of chemical compounds (used to develop, or in intercourse darkish rooms to scrub the house), the crimson lighting, and the sense of anticipation – the reveal of the picture because it develops, the potential of an encounter. “Each forms of darkroom are utopian areas,” Ajamu says. “Particularly the intercourse darkroom as a result of folks really feel liberated to discover their sexuality and pleasure.” Patron Saint is meant to stimulate viewers past the visible realm, whether or not by scent, arousal or reminiscence.
