Joseph “Joei” Krutza looks over some of his artwork, which glows under a blacklight when dark, on Friday, May 26, 2023, at 317 Art Collective in Rockford. Krutza is the curator of the exhibit Queer AF, which celebrates the start of Pride month with a show featuring LGBTQA+ artists. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)
By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — A new exhibit at 317 Art Collaborative sets out to showcase the strength and vibrance of the local LGBTQ+ community and the unique perspectives each artist has to offer.

The Queer AF exhibit debuts Friday at the gallery and artist residences at 317 Market St. Resident artist Joei Krutza curated the show with an eye toward offering as many perspectives as possible.

“Every single member of the community is an individual person,” Krutza said. “So part of what I did when I was curating is make sure I have as many different viewpoints as possible.”

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More than a dozen artists will be featured with diverse mediums and subject matter. Some work focuses on the male or female form, there are pieces that represent the scar tissues trans men have from mastectomies and there’s abstract work.

“Art comes in many forms,” Krutza said. “I’m trying to make sure there’s representation for whether it’s super easy to pallet — as if it was a still life — as well as some of the aspects of people expressing themselves and their darker sides that they’ve seen and want to get out of their brains.”

Joseph “Joei” Krutza, pictured in front of one of his pieces from the “I Want to Believe” group show, is the curator for the upcoming show Queer AF, which kicks off Pride Month. (Photo by Kevin Haas/Rock River Current)

He said there is some figurative work that could be considered graphic by some.

“I don’t have anything that should be outwardly not safe for children,” he said. “If you’re in a family that takes kids to see figure work with nudity in it at all, it’s going to be on par with that, but there shouldn’t be anything that’s explicit to the point that you would feel uncomfortably having a child walk through as long as they understand that aspect of it.”

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Krutza, who lives in Rockford with his husband, also named Joe, came out as gay at age 16. He said some of the work curated for the show is therapeutic for artists who struggle to live openly. While it’s easier today than it was decades ago, he said recent legislation introduced across the country has raised new fears for the LGBTQ+ community. According to the Human Rights Campaign, an anti-discrimination advocacy group, there have been more than 520 anti-LGBTQ+ laws introduced in state legislatures around the country so far this year.

“We seem to be backsliding and that does lead to some of the negative emotions and negative aspects you deal with on a daily basis,” Krutza said.

Aida Rosemore, a Rockford artist that works in mixed media including using reclaimed wood and other materials, will have three pieces at the show. After displaying her work at three past ArtScenes, this will be her first curated show.

“I like the idea of more realistically portrayed objects in more dream-like settings,” she said. “For this series it’s a lot about queer identity and the focus on … discussing ‘do I want to be this person, or am I attracted to this person?’ And kind of negotiating those components of my identity.”

Aida Rosemore, left, will have three pieces in the Queer AF art exhibit at 317 Art Collaborative in Rockford, including “Lust, Pride, Envy.” (Photos provided by Aida Rosemore)

Rosemore, who runs the sustainable Owl’s Roost Farm with her wife, Allyson, said the Liam Foundation was an important support network for her when she came out as a trans woman about two years ago.

Her work explores identity, and she hopes viewers take in her work from a slightly different perspective.

“Not one that’s not necessarily expressible, but one that’s felt,” she said. “So you know you’ve seen something differently, but you can’t quite figure out how.”


Know before you go | Queer AF art exhibit

Where: 317 Art Collaborative, 317 Market St., Rockford

When: Opening reception runs 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Friday, June 2. Show continues through July 22

Admission: Free

Curator: Joseph “Joei” Krutza


This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on Twitter at @KevinMHaas.

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