"Because We Are"

Disease, hatred and official discrimination - much of the art in the Station Museum's "Because We Are" exhibit draws defiant grace from some very dark places. Nearly a dozen artists working in nearly as many mediums address the struggles that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people face. Daniel Goldstein's Medicine Man is a striking example - it'd be an understatement to say the human-shaped sculpture, fashioned of empty HIV med bottles and syringes, is grim, but there's a distinct elegance to the piece. David Wojnarowicz's moving Untitled (One Day This Kid...) is a picture surrounded by a short narrative that, with terse prose, depicts a gay child's bleak and abusive future - a story that's deplorably common. Photographer Zanele Muholi's intimate pictures of black lesbian couples in her home country of South Africa give voice to an international perspective. Seven other artists round out this powerful exhibit. 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesdays through Sundays. Through September 19. 1502 Alabama. For information, call 713-529-6960 or visit www.stationmuseum.com. Free.
Sat., June 19, 7-10 p.m.; Wednesdays-Sundays, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Starts: June 19. Continues through Sept. 19, 2010