Due to the enlargement of government action and violent crimes against the LGBTQIA+ community, I created a Queer Ballroom Night Club. If you do not know, Ballroom is a subculture that was created by African American and Latino queer people. It was born in New York in the 70s and has grown in popularity ever since. Participants compete in categories, to bring glory, pride, and prizes to their house. A “House” is a family a person can select, or be recruited for by a house Mother and/or Father. A chosen family if you will. Houses had family members that were homeless, dis - owned by their blood families, and even closeted men and women that were too afraid to be themselves in the real world. Ballroom was a place of gathering to express your true self and to not be afraid of what others think. That is the magic of this community, it is run on confidence and love.

I wanted to pay tribute to the queer icons that help start, defend, and celebrate, the life us queer people have today. For this tribute I created a circulation area for the people going to the upper floors of the club. The “Icon Hall” is decorated with black and white portraits of queer icons, past and present. Icons include: Gianni Versace, Diana Ross, Cher, Crystal LaBeija (The Queen of Ballroom), Divine, Venus Xtravaganza, RuPaul, Marsha P. Johnson and Naya Rivera. Just to name a few.

Included with this tribute, the name of the club “Dorothy’s” and the style of design I chosen itself is a tribute. The name Dorothy comes from the movie “The Wizard of Oz”. Back in the 70s, the term “are you a friend of Dorothy’s?” was popular surrounding closeted gay men in Europe and the United States. If you answer yes, whoever asked knows your queer, if they answer no then it’s the opposite. The maximalist design style I strived to use was derived from how extravagant and camp queer people dress while performing. Color, pattern, and materials were all popularized by how they were used in fashion.That is what I strived to achieve; camp. An adjective, meaning exaggerated, theatrical, and flamboyant. Dethroning the seriousness