In the multi-media installation The Butch Closet, artist Phranc illustrates her life stories as a queer artist, Jewish lesbian folk singer, and "cardboard cobbler." By meticulously re-creating personal objects and pieces of clothing out of paper, cardboard, thread, and paint, she revisits her own history, contextualizing her experiences as an iconic performer, and maker, constructing, reconstructing, and re-imagining her image against a larger historical context of second-wave feminism and queer activism. The institute's presentation of The Butch Closet is the second iteration of the project, offering a more intimate and immersive engagement with Phranc's sculptural works. As part of the installation, visitors can peer into a closet built in the center of the gallery designed by the artist. Conceptually, the space shifts from inside to outside, public and private, and explores themes of visibility and that which remains inaccessible or unseen.

About the artist:
Phranc is a jewish lesbian folksinger and queer artist who uses song, painting and sculpture to champion personal identities and illustrate the struggle, survival, and victory of the queer individual. An internationally acclaimed and award winning performer. Phranc’s work integrates humor and a butch lesbian aesthetic. Her current project, Phranc Talk: The Butch Closet, is a multi-media memoir that spans her 40-year career. Phranc lives and works in Santa Monica, California and Vancouver, British Columbia.

Phranc is the 2024 Woodhead Visiting Artist at the Institute for the Humanities.