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Foundations: Dom Orejudos, the artist Etienne I am an archives volunteer at the <strong>Leather</strong> <strong>Archives</strong> & <strong>Museum</strong>, an archivist by profession, and an unabashedly proud Etienne devotee. Some of my earliest experiences of self-acceptance and celebration as a young leatherman involved locating my desires within Etienne’s amazing artwork in the pages of Drummer, In-Touch For Men, the Storytime series and the complete Meatmen comic. I couldn’t get enough of his art! I made visits to the Glad Day Bookstore in Toronto while still a student to gobble up all I could find of his life and artwork. When I heard of Dom’s passing in the gay press, I think it was the first time I had ever cried over the loss of someone I didn’t even personally know. More than anything or anyone else, Etienne lead me to the LA&M. By the late 1990’s, I had heard that his works had been collected, preserved, and exhibited there; I knew I had to make a pilgrimage, if for no other reason than to feel his presence, thank him in spirit, and offer my own services to help preserve his legacy in any way I could. The first time I visited the LA&M and entered the Auditorium, I was overwhelmed—blown away, actually. A sense of profuse warmth washed over me and I sat down, quietly and by myself, surrounded by all these wonderful original murals. My emotions overwhelmed me and tears just started rolling down my face. I think it was so many things: the joy of being with his spirit; being in Chicago, where his leather life and lore began. And simultaneously feeling sadness, knowing that he left us far too early, like so many of his generation and those since. To be honest, those same feelings still wash over me every time I enter the LA&M. Most know and celebrate Dom Orejudos as the gay erotic artist Etienne and/or Stephen, but he was also a dancer, choreographer, humorist, voracious reader, observer, teacher, lover, storyteller and kinkster. He was a devoted and caring man to both his biological and chosen families. Dom was a man of immense talent, humility and honor. Founding Editor-in-Chief of Drummer magazine and gay historian Jack Fritscher described him as, “a sweet, gentle man.” Domingo (‘Dom’) Francisco Stephen Orejudos was a man whose life and art was intrinsically woven into the evolution of gay and <strong>Leather</strong> culture in the second half of twentieth century America. His legacy remains a beacon for <strong>Leather</strong> and Kink folk around the world, and his story opens the door to enjoying and learning all the <strong>Leather</strong> <strong>Archives</strong> & <strong>Museum</strong> has to offer. More than perhaps any other person, his spirit pervades the LA&M and its raison d’etre, the Etienne Artwork Collection. Dom Orejudos, the artist Etienne Born of Italian and Philippino parents in 1933 Chicago, Dom Orejudos grew up with an impish and driven desire to draw, often sketching in grammar school class. As a young adult, his early influences included famed gay artist George Quaintance, whose classical style and settings were reflected in Dom’s seminal works in the 1950’s and early 1960’s. His men were often presented in period and situational settings and this would become a trademark of his renderings. Etienne, however, took gay erotic art to new levels Quaintance only dreamed of, revelling unashamedly in all the throws and ecstasies of male-dom. Dom began his drawing career in Tomorrow’s Man #8 (1953) and quickly became the artist-in-residence for Kris 35
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LOCATED IN CHICAGO… SERVING THE W