For all who grew up in the Rockaways remember Playland. Whether you were very young with all your families your first time. One can never forget this wonderful place. As we grew older many of us went there to hang out as they use to say and just be there on a saturday with our own friends. Again it was a simpler time. For a few dollars we could be with our friends or by ourselves. Remembering All the smells and the grit of the place is another feeling of home. I have been collecting photograph and postcards for over 30 years now . Its fun to put them all together for all to see this wonderful place. I hope you enjoy all your own memories.
Bruce Baumwoll
Click the photograph and it shall take you to a little film I did on Playland a few years ago
None Of Us Are Free , Until All Of Us Are Free, To Be Who We Truly Are
I still find it rather hard to believe That my little films have reached and audience of over 1,000,000. I am a very very late bloomer. I hope you enjoy my new little film.
I hope you enjoy my new little film.
None Of Us Are Free Until All Of Us Are Free To Be Who We Are Truly Are
I keep pushing myself . In this one I have add my voice at the beginning I still find it rather hard to believe That my little films have reached and audience of over 1,000,000. I am a very very late bloomer. I hope you enjoy my new little film. Be Who You Are, There’s No One In The World Like You Bruce Baumwoll
To the few who feel I go too fast, this is a little moving picture. This is why I move the photographs at the speed I do. If you want to study a photograph, stop the film. This is a moment in time meant for you to relax and go for the ride. You see what you see and you feel what you feel. Its a little movie trying to take you somewhere else. Relax and let me take you there. To really get anywhere one must let go. Remember you can see all YouTube videos on your TV . Which makes them so much larger to be able to see. Bruce Baumwoll
Wikipedia Handsome Devil is a 2016 Irish comedy-drama film directed by John Butler.[2] It was screened in the Contemporary World Cinema section at the 2016 Toronto International Film Festival.[3] It centres around an ostracised teenager (Fionn O’Shea) at an elite, rugby-obsessed, all-boys boarding school in Ireland modelled on Castleknock and Blackrock, whose new roommate (Nicholas Galitzine) is the school’s new rugby star-player.[4][5] The two form an unlikely friendship until it is tested by those around them.[6] The film features themes of homosexuality, while examining hypocrisy and snobbery in the Irish private school system. Handsome Devil received critical acclaim, winning the award for Best Irish Feature of 2017 from the Dublin Film Critics’ Circle;[7] four nominations at the 2018 Irish Film and Television Academy (IFTA) Awards,[8] including Best Feature Film; and the Best Single Drama Award at the annual Celtic Media Festival in 2018.[9] Plot The film is set at an elite rugby-obsessed all boys boarding school in Ireland modelled on Castleknock and Blackrock, and is seen through the eyes of Ned, an ostracised student at the school.[10][11] He seems to be the only student there who does not enjoy rugby. A new student arrives at the school, Conor, who is Ned’s roommate and a star rugby player. Though the two are initially wary of each other, they soon form a close friendship, with a particular interest in music. The new English teacher, Mr. Sherry, also arrives at the school, who, though stern, is encouraging towards Ned and Conor. It is revealed throughout the film that the school generally encourages homophobic behaviour, particularly by the students and the rugby coach, Pascal. During a night out celebrating with the rugby team, Conor sees Mr. Sherry with his male partner at a gay club and understands that he is homosexual. At the same time, Ned realises that Conor himself is gay after seeing him in the same gay club. Pascal sees the two of them talking with each other and becomes worried that Mr. Sherry’s influence will have a negative effect on Conor, his most valuable player. Ned and Conor decide to perform a musical piece at the local elementary school’s variety show, at the encouragement of Mr. Sherry. Pascal encourages Weasel to ask his cousin (who attends the same school Conor did) the reason behind Connor getting into fights. He discovers that Conor was kicked out of his former school for repeatedly getting into fights with those who discovered that he was gay, and uses it as blackmail, insinuating that if he does not pick different friends, his secret will be revealed. As a result, Conor does not turn up to the variety show performance, much to Ned’s dismay. Ned turns up to an event with the rugby team, where Conor shoves him away in front of the entire team. Angry and frustrated, Ned outs Conor in front of the entire school during a rugby rally. A remorseful Ned is suspended and Conor runs away. As the final match approaches, Conor is still missing. Ned knows where to find him and brings him back to the stadium, where they convince Pascal that he can still be gay and a good rugby player, and that Conor is not ashamed of his sexuality, despite that being the case in the past. Although Pascal resists, the team stands by Conor, ultimately forcing Pascal to concede. The team eventually wins the final of the Leinster Schools Senior Cup while Mr. Sherry comes out to the school dean at the game. Ned returns to the school and wins the English writing competition using the story of his friendship with Conor which he names “Handsome Devil.”
SHINING LIGHT by Andrew Reach, 2007 uv cured inkjet on acrylic, 24″w x 36″h
This artwork is one of two of Andrew’s artworks selected to be in the exhibition. Titled SHINING LIGHT, it’s from a photograph he took of me at the entrance to the Christopher Street subway station in 1984. It will be shown at the LGBTQ Center of Greater Cleveland in the Gordon Square Arts District which is one of 3 other venues for the exhibition.
Andrew describes the artwork as follows: “Shining Light is a visual love letter. The light above Bruce’s head softly illuminates him like a halo, while my “whimsies” surround him, attracted to his beautiful essence. SHINING LIGHT speaks to the simple universal notion of the deep love and commitment of two men spending a life together and the homage one man pays to the other he loves so deeply.”
ASTERISCUS I, 2021 uv cured inkjet on cnc cut acrylic, 48″h x 43″w
This is the other artwork selected for the exhibition. It will be shown at another venue, Metrohealth Hospital.
Andrew’s art is already represented at the center as he was commissioned during the buildings construction to do a permanent installation in the “Lounge” off of the main entrance (see photo below)
Me in front of Andrew’s commissioned artwork “Fifty Three Rhombuses” at the LGBTQ Center of Greater Cleveland, uv cured inkjet on cnc cut composite aluminum.
From the Artists Archives of the Western Reserve’s website:
“This August, the Artists Archives of the Western Reserve presents CONVERGE, a massive visual art exhibition held in partnership with the LGBTQ Center of Greater Cleveland, Lake Erie College, and Cleveland MetroHealth. Shown across 4 venues, CONVERGE brings together the diverse stories of the LGBTQ community, including the historically underrepresented voices of women, transgender people, and people of color.”
