Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice
The Hammonds House Museum transformed Friday night from an art gallery into a runway show, reminiscent of the ballroom scenes of the ’80s and ’90s New York City, as it opened “Beau McCall: Divas, Blues, and Memories,” an exhibition that channels decades of friendship, loss, and the healing power of music through dazzling button-encrusted collages.
“I walked around and looked at your work, and it made me want to dance,” Fulton County Commissioner for District 4 Mo Ivory said during the opening reception.
McCall, who has worked with buttons for more than 40 years, created the exhibition as a deeply personal tribute to friends lost to AIDS and other social ills during the early days of the LGBTQ movement.
“All my friends passed on,” McCall said during his opening remarks, “I have one of the guys that’s in the exhibition. We used to have this conversation about who was going to be the last one to tell the story, and I ended up being the last one.”
Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice
The exhibition chronicles how McCall and his circle of friends bonded through what he calls “diva worship”, finding solace and community in the music of popular and obscure female performers whose songs reflected their experiences of drama, pain, and happiness during the 1970s through 1990s.
“Music is very important to me in my life,” McCall explained. “I grew up with jazz playing through the house 24/7. When I came out and met like-minded guys in the LGBT community, we started diva worshiping. These songs bonded our friendships together through music.”
Photo by Noah Washington/The Atlanta Voice
Souleo, McCalls’s partner, was the curator for the exhibit and selected pieces that balance celebration with remembrance, incorporating McCall’s collages alongside sculptural wearable art focused on the blues. The curator emphasized the exhibition’s relevance to contemporary struggles facing the LGBTQ community.
“In the 1970s, particularly, when Bo and his friends were coming of age in the LGBTQ movement, those were the early days,” Souleo said. “We’ve come a significant way in terms of gay marriage, but we see with the government, there’s still a lot of challenges up ahead. This show is a reminder that no matter what the odds are, we can overcome them.”
Halima Taha, artistic director of Hammonds House, noted the exhibition’s universal themes. “What you will see is love of music and verse and memory and motion and spirit,” she told attendees, announcing a panel discussion scheduled for the following day.
David Manuel, representing Fulton County’s FACE program (Fashion, Art, Culture and Education), praised McCall’s innovative use of materials. “His work, his use of fabric, his use of buttons, and the message behind that is outlining what fashion is,” Manuel said. “When you can get people to stand in front of artwork and talk about it days and weeks after, because of the impact and effect, that means we’re doing something good.”
Despite four decades of artistic practice, McCall said recognition has come primarily in the last 15 years, crediting Souleo’s curatorial vision and advocacy. The couple is currently celebrating 16 years together.
“Every generation has a generation before them,” McCall reflected. “I had a generation before me that opened a lot of doors, so I could be comfortable in my journey. Now it’s my turn to open doors so the generation behind me can be comfortable moving through their journey.”
The exhibition employs buttons as a unifying artistic element, which Souleo described as “a way to connect us, to remind us about universality, our common humanity.” The wearable pieces and wall installations demonstrate McCall’s range beyond traditional collage work.
When asked what he hopes visitors take from the exhibition, McCall offered a forward-looking perspective: “I want them to reflect on today, tomorrow, and the possibilities of what the future could bring.”
Souleo distilled the exhibition’s mission even more simply: “Joy and inspiration.”