Utilising the works of Rotimi Fani-Kayode, Cuban-born artist René Peña, and the late George Dureau as case studies in Black queer sexuality, representation, and homoerotic mythologies, curator Moroti George delves into the politics of desire and its historical and ongoing implications for the perception and articulation of Black masculinity and the queer embodied self. Touching on themes such as the grotesque and de-corporealize Black form, Black phallus envy and spectacle, devotional aesthetics, and the fetishisation of Blackness, disability, and vulnerability, this lecture traces how the entanglements of desire and pathology follow societal precedent and are reproduced within visual culture. It considers how beauty and desire are constructed, framed, and consumed—while also presenting possibilities for erotic freedom, self-definition, and Black queer radical refusal.

Doors at 6:30pm
Talk at 7:00pm

Admission is by a suggested donation of $10-$20, courtesy of BMO Financial Group

RSVPs are helpful

About Moroti George
Olumoroti (Moroti) Soji-George (he/they) is a curator, writer, and educator based in Vancouver, BC. He currently serves as the Director/Curator of Gallery Gachet and the Curator at the Black Arts Centre in Surrey. His practice is rooted in exploring how Blackness is embodied, coded, and represented across visual culture and shared social landscapes. Guided by a belief in the radical possibilities of space, Moroti envisions community-centred art environments that honour lived experience and expand who is seen, heard, and valued in cultural discourse. Through curatorial research grounded in language, archival engagement, and lens-based work, his approach reflects a commitment to non-hierarchical knowledge production. He is particularly invested in the ways contemporary Black artists shape new cultural and ontological imaginaries that challenge dominant Western frameworks.

Image: René Peña, Untitled, 1996. Courtesy of Lucie Garcia Gallery.