Sadie Barnette: The New Eagle Creek Saloon - Opening Day Talk

Sadie Barnette and her father, Rodney Barnette, take a seat at the bar, sharing stories that detail the labor of love that went into both manifestations of the New Eagle Creek Saloon, on the opening night of Sadie Barnette: The New Eagle Creek Saloon.
This marks the transformation of a gallery at the Walker into a shimmering reimagining of the first Black-owned queer bar in San Francisco, operated by the artist’s father. The exhibition celebrates the unwritten histories of Black queer spaces.
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The New Eagle Creek Saloon is Oakland-based artist Sadie Barnette’s (US, b. 1984) reimagining of her father’s New Eagle Creek Saloon, the first Black-owned gay bar in San Francisco. The original bar (1990-1993) offered a haven for a multiracial queer community marginalized by racist profiling in other social spaces throughout the city. With this project, Barnette honors Black queer joy and her own family history by reanimating her father’s bar and its legacy as a space of community connection and engagement. Bathed in neon light and glitter, The New Eagle Creek Saloon is an open, inviting, and living space for learning, resistance, and pleasure.
At the Walker, The New Eagle Creek Saloon will serve drinks and present programs every Thursday featuring Twin Cities-based artists, cultural leaders, and organizational partners. The bar will host happy hours with specially curated DJ sets, live readings, and performances. Outside of these events, the space is open for visitors to hang out and to explore as an installation. The New Eagle Creek Saloon is a Black queer social space where everyone is welcome.
walkerart.org/calendar/2024/s...

[@TheAverycross]

Beautiful living installation and worthwhile tribute to a legacy. Thank you so much for sharing this. I really appreciate the Barnette family's stories and hard work behind their journey and vision.