2026
I had started to use apps like grindr and sniffies again, not really to hookup just to talk. It was liberating freely engaging and shooting my shot with men I’d be too nervous to ever speak to in person. Yet, online I felt safe to reach out and say “hey” to men I found attractive, I could do so anonymously.
Apparently I was not the only one, as there were also multiple men whom messaged me to confess they had a crush on me in high school. Who were these men suddenly coming out of the woodworks nearly a decade later? I have no clue, and thats ok. There’s a beauty and sacredness to anonymity.
Queer culture has thrived in the shadows, it has found ways to seek refuge and safety in anonymity. I love that so much.
In spirit of this, I hosted a Queer only masquerade at a local church. With the help of my father, we built a confession booth to gather everyones confessions at the kiki. I later gathered everyone’s confessions and overlayed them so they would all play at the same time. By hearing everyone’s confessions all at once you essentially hear no one’s at all. We keep each other safe.
48”x48”x80”
25 minutes audio
Materials
Confessions audio recordings, wood, velvet, incense, candle, porcelain
Fabricated by Juan Hernandez