In the 1970s and early 1980s, the New York Piers were the site of much activity among artists and an emerging gay culture. At the piers, gay men would congregate, sunbathe naked, and engage in sexual encounters. Significant New York based artists explored this dynamic site, inspired by the mix of an emerging gay culture and the ruins of dilapidated New York structures. Peter Hujar, of course, was there and his work is included in the “Piers” exhibition now on view at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Gay and Lesbian Art.
Here a few more photographs by Hujar taken at the New York Piers during the 1970s and 80s: