ABOUT THE PROJECT

The experimental nonfiction film and installation Gay Men’s Book Club brings together seven homosexuals, all almost strangers to one another, to discuss the book Elite Capture by Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò. Based on an actual book club Lax participated in, these unscripted conversations, facilitated by the artist in collaboration with community organizer, founding member of the Radical Faeries, and Jungian psychologist Dr. Don Kilhefner, explores Táíwò’s concept of elite capture as it relates to community, privilege, organizing, and intersectionality.

GMBC is an intergenerational portrait of the group dynamics found within social environments. GMBC will exist as a feature-length, two-channel installation, a single channel theatrical film, and a decentralized learning platform in the form of a book featuring the film’s transcript, related essays, as well as a website where footage, lesson plans, and research materials can be accessed, encouraging other reading groups and safe spaces for discussion.

"Gay Men's Book Club" was funded by Prospect Art's NEW WORK Focus on Los Angeles grant program, with additional support from Los Angeles Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE) and the Warhol Foundation's Lightning Fund.