Tez and Marquise, Evisu Ball Manhattan, NY, October 2010: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A color photographic print portrait of Tez, with brother Marquise in the background, captured at the Evisu Ball in Manhattan in 2010 before walking the "Butch Queen Bizarre" category. Tez's face, neck and chest are painted blue and his bright blue eyes look directly at the camera. He wears an elaborate bright blue and white wig and a gown of clear plastic fashioned with an exaggerated high-stand collar and ruffle sleeves. The edges are tinged gold and gold and magenta buttons cover the chest and waist. Marquise is out of focus and stands in the background right of the frame, dressed in black and looking down. There are no inscriptions, front or back.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: October 2010
• Photograph by: Gerard H. Gaskin, Trinidadian American, born 1965
• Printed by: Light Work, American, founded 1973
• Type: portraits
• Type: inkjet prints
• Medium: ink on Canson Baryta photographique paper
• Dimensions: H x W (Sheet) : 20 × 16 in. (50.8 × 40.6 cm)
• Dimensions: H x W (Image) : 19 × 12 5/8 in. (48.3 × 32.1 cm)
• Place captured: Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States, North and Central America
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Communities
• Topic: Dance
• Topic: Fashion
• Topic: Gender
• Topic: Identity
• Topic: LGBTQ
• Topic: Music
• Object number: 2019.71.1
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The underlying object's rights statement is: © Gerard Gaskin Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.