There are a million misconceptions about sex work. Who are sex workers? What leads people to sex work? What does sex work look like? Can sex workers be artists? Can sex work itself be art? There are no clean answers to any of these questions — and sex workers are the only people who can even begin to provide them. That assertion is at the center of We’re Still Working: The Art of Sex Work, which opens at SOMArts Cultural Center on January 26 and runs through February 25. Co-curated by Maxine Holloway and Javier Luis Hurtado, the show is guided by the demand: Nothing about us without us. In the large group exhibition, artists who do or have done sex work define the sex work narrative on their own terms, presenting artwork in an array of media that speak to their personal experiences. The show also includes collaborative pieces between artists who are allies to the sex work community and sex workers who do not have art practices. The opening reception on Thursday, January 26, from 6–9 p.m. will feature performances by Arabelle Raphael, Joseph Liatela, and LYRIC LGBTQ Youth Center.
.We’re Still Working: The Art of Sex Work At SOMArts
