photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
photo by Kevin Truong
Alcinoo, in his own words: “Being gay is a definition like any other, and like all definitions it has a place in my world in as much as it needs to be taken apart at the seams. And fundamentally it has meant many things at different times. So while there were times when it meant defining my persona, my place (or lack of) within the groups I frequented or wanted to be part of, now it is less an opportunity to define as something to discover and ultimately to let go of. I find having to think of myself as gay as a peculiar opportunity. Its biggest blessing has lied in forcing my own evolution as a human being to include rather than exclude, to grow compassionately and remain open. I always felt that it served that purpose from the day I had to start to define anything related to my sexuality. A way to be more open, accepting, humble, understanding. Ultimately making me into a better person through all the nuances of what it meant growing up gay in the 70s and 80s. Being on the edge of things keeps me on my toes.
I have a big issue with gay-ness mostly being related to the sexual act, or serving as a definition for sexual preference. It beggars belief how anyone could be referred to and defined so heavily just by that, as I see myself as so many things beyond my sexuality. Yet it becomes an issue and in a way as gay men we are forced into mental and physical ghettos.
Learning first hand about the significance of preconceptions is invaluable none the less as they define all human interactions.
You ask what the gay community in Rio is like, but I am probably not the best person to ask, and I don’t have many good things to say about it. I know lots of gay men in Rio, friends and acquaintances and I find it hard to put them in a box, or a community, because each one is defined by their own personal trajectory. I find that the gay community in Rio is a group made of so many ricocheting individuals drawn together by a need to belong and gelled by drugs and sex into that whole. Reason why I don’t frequent bars, clubs, saunas, beaches.
There are many gay communities in Rio. I like to think I create a gay community every time I meet with my friends. Whether they be gay or not!”