Steven Reigns' The Gay Rub Archives 500 LGBT Historical Marker Rubbings Worldwide
The Gay Rub, an archive established by Steven Reigns, features around 500 rubbings from LGBT historical sites across the globe. With the help of 100 contributors, Reigns utilized black crayon on fabric to capture impressions from locations such as Berlin, Chicago, Paris, New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco. Among the collection are rubbings from a 1750 memorial in Paris honoring Jean Diot and Bruno Lenoir, as well as notable figures like Alan Turing, Tom McBride, and Franklin Pangborn. Inspired by a memorial in 2009, Reigns became West Hollywood's inaugural Poet Laureate in 2014. The project has been showcased at various institutions, and a 15-minute documentary was released in 2018. Additionally, the NYC LGBTQ Historic Sites Project, initiated in 2015, documents nearly 500 NYC locations.
Key facts
- Steven Reigns founded The Gay Rub, an archive of about 500 rubbings from LGBT historical markers worldwide.
- The collection includes rubbings from sites in Berlin, Chicago, Paris, New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.
- A rubbing from a 1750 memorial in Paris commemorates Jean Diot and Bruno Lenoir, executed for consensual sex.
- The archive features Alan Turing rubbings from London and Chicago's Legacy Walk.
- Reigns was inspired by a 2009 transgender victims memorial in West Hollywood.
- The project has been exhibited at ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives, Loyola Marymount University, Webster University, and Appalachian State University.
- A 15-minute documentary about The Gay Rub was made in 2018.
- The NYC LGBTQ Historic Sites Project documented nearly 500 LGBTQ locations in New York City and criticized the NPS for removing "transgender" and "queer" from Stonewall's website in early 2025.
Entities
Artists
- Steven Reigns
- Tom McBride
- Franklin Pangborn
- Sylvester
- Jean Diot
- Bruno Lenoir
- Alan Turing
- Tennessee Williams
- Harvey Milk
- Octavia E. Butler
- Jim Downs
- Ann Sothern
Institutions
- The Gay Rub
- City Lights Books
- ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives
- Loyola Marymount University
- Webster University
- Appalachian State University
- NYC LGBTQ Historic Sites Project
- National Park Service
- Stonewall National Monument
- Gettysburg College
- L'Humanité
- Chicago Legacy Walk
Locations
- West Hollywood
- Los Angeles
- California
- Berlin
- Germany
- Chicago
- Illinois
- Paris
- France
- New York City
- New York
- San Francisco
- Glendale
- Inglewood
- London
- United Kingdom
- St. Louis
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- United States