Pasaquan the colorful built environment by one of Georgia's earliest and certainly most colorful queer characters has been designed as a National Historic Site. The place is just magical, and the story of Eddie Martin or Saint EOM is one that has to be turned into a movie one day. It's just such a great story. A fourteen year old boy driven from his poor sharecroppers home in South Georgia for being "different" ends up in New York City in the midst of the Counter Cultural scene. A street hustler, turning tricks and telling fortunes, creating this extravagant persona. Constantly soaking in the art of the NY museums and cultural institutions.
When he comes back to South Georgia (The voices told him to) he started the Pasaquan compound built from common building materials but inspired by a kaleidoscope of culture blended into a mishmash of utopian fantasy.
I used to go down there quite a bit years ago, back when you could just wander around and still peak in the windows. There have been efforts to restore it and get it reopened, hopefully the new historic designation will help. A nice bit of Georgia history well deserving of preservation.
This is also a very important bit of queer history that we should all appreciate. The queer experience of building one's own world and colorful environment (including costumes) as a way of dealing with a harsh sometimes cruel world.
The High did a show on him years ago, there's a coffee table book and a film as well (the video below may be part of it - not sure).
I love in the video the local businessman referring to St. EOM as "not the marrying kind."
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment