Joy. Sorrow. Anger. Love. PRIDE

05 Jun 2023 -
We’ve all done Pride. Some have been great, and some have been ruined by things like rain, corporations, activists, ex-lovers, or bad drugs. But the event is usually fun, and always welcome. 

This year, the Magenta Foundation is hosting an exhibit titled Joy. Sorrow. Anger. Love. PRIDE: A Celebration of Toronto Pride, 1970s – Present. It’s both a visual art exhibition at the Collision Gallery, and an accompanying publication that launched June 1. Joy. Sorrow. Anger. Love. PRIDE is done in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of The ArQuives, who provided a lot of the material on display. 

I attended a preview of the event at the Collision Gallery, which is in the courtyard of Commerce Court Plaza, between Jump restaurant and the sculpture of the mother elephant walking with her two kids trailing behind her. It’s a nice bright room, and the walls were filled with photographs from past Prides. Magenta president and originator of the project MaryAnn Camilleri gave me a quick tour. My head spun as I tried to take it all in. There’s a lot here. The exhibit reminded me of my first Pride back in 1981, so it’s a real trip down Memory Lane. The only complaint I have is that neither the exhibit nor the book have much to say about all the amazing entertainment at Pride over the years. I recall seeing great local bands like Crackpuppy, The Cliks and Carole Pope, and big names like Cyndi Lauper, ABC and Thelma Houston. All we get here is one picture of The Parachute Club. 

Camilleri spent three years working on the event, and she reached out to all the community groups who have participated in the past. Only one organization snubbed her, and that was the 519 Community Centre. There’s no point in speculating as to why they didn’t respond to her requests, but really, they should get it together. Their absence is conspicuous.

Then Camilleri handed me the accompanying publication, a big hardcover book filled with many of the same photos and some text for perspective. It’s a lovely book, and like the egomaniac that I am, I took it home and combed through it looking for pictures of me. Didn’t find any, but my name does appear on a Cheap Queers poster from 2003. Anyway, there’s a good chance your picture might be in there somewhere. And even if not, the flood of visuals will help you recall many golden moments of past Prides. One photo in particular struck me. It is of a group of people dressed like hot dogs and buns, doing some sloppy choreography while walking down Yonge Street. I remember it well, as I was one of the parade judges that year, and all of us on the judging panel were floored by it. What did dancing hot dogs and buns have to do with Pride? Who knows. Made me hungry, though. 

The book Joy. Sorrow. Anger. Love. PRIDE is a welcome addition to any library, and why not drop by to see the exhibit? It will certainly put it all into perspective for you.