Throughout the 1970s and 80s, the abandoned piers running along New York’s West Side Highway served as a hotbed of gay cruising activity as well as a haven for the broader LGBT community. By the mid-1990s, abutting neighborhoods were undergoing intense transformation through gentrification, with many dilapidated buildings and structures being demolished. The remaining piers were a gathering spot beyond the boundaries of daily life, where gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people found a place to be openly themselves. For some, the piers were a place for hustlers and sex workers to meet with their patrons. For others, the piers . . . .go to book page >>

Before the days of cell phones and social media, nearly every gay bar and club offered free matchbooks to their patrons. The custom matchbooks served not only as a means for lighting one's cigarette, but also to collect names and phone numbers on the matchbook’s inside cover while cruising. A love letter to a lost art, Cruising: Gay Matchbooks is an archive of 200 matchbooks from gay bars and bathhouses. The publication includes matchbooks from iconic institutions, such as the Saint (New York), Florent (New York), the Stud (San Francisco), St. Marks Baths (New York) and the Eagle (New York), . . . .go to book page >>