Tuesday November 12, from 4 to 5:30 pm
Judson Memorial Church
Entrance at 43 Thompson St.
New York, NY 10012
Through visual experimentation and writing, the participants in this workshop will address aspects of their daily lives and their own story, taking as a starting point the cartoon vignettes of Milton García Ninja, which are always accompanied by poems that make up what the artist calls a “pictorial diary”. Milton Garcia Ninja and Luna Luis Ortiz are both visual artists and icons of NYC's House/Ballroom scene, as well as friends since their adolescence and both Visual AIDS artists. The workshop will feature a conversation between the two, in which they will contextualize their life and work while giving strategies and ideas to start your own artwork. Milton and Luna will guide you through different steps of their creative processes so that the drawings and writings will be boosted with magazine cutouts, polaroid photos of yourself and a pop-up effect that will take your creation to 3D.
Milton Garcia Ninja (A.K.A MGNinja) is an artist, cartoonist, voguer, dancer, choreographer, and public speaker whose poetry alongside his cartoon vignettes portray aspects of his life and the lives of those around him. An Icon of the Legendary House of Ninja in NY’s House/Ballroom scene, Milton inspires LGBTQ youth, young adults and other communities with his takes on beauty in the simplicity of life. In August 2002, Milton was diagnosed HIV positive and has never lost his commitment to enlightening everyone he knows and meets through his unique life experiences. Milton’s cartoon vignettes are a “pictorial diary” of his life and what inspires and drives him. From subjects as simple as the color red and strawberries to complex issues such as infidelity in relationships and addiction, his colorful, playful, and expressive cartoons will endure in your memory and your heart. Milton is an Artist Member of Visual AIDS and has worked with Visual AIDS on many projects, including creating artwork for PlaySmart condom kits, speaking on panels, and consulting on the Last Address Tribute Walk: Harlem in 2022.
Luna Luis Ortiz is a widely recognized and published artist and photographer from New York City. Ortiz was raised with a strong emphasis on activism, particularly in the areas of LGBTQ equality and HIV/AIDS advocacy. He commenced his ballroom journey in 1988 and has been consistently captivated by its allure ever since. He is an Icon and Hall of Famer in the Ballroom.