Arts & Entertainment
‘Fight the Power’
From ‘Homocats’ to gender-bending video installations, region’s galleries not offering same old thing

‘HOMOCATS’ (Courtesy Transformer)
“Fade 2 Grey,” a solo exhibition by artist Adrian Loving featuring six video art installations that explore androgyny, gender roles, fashion and sensationalism of style in ‘80s pop music through artists such as Patti Smith, David Bowie, Grace Jones, Sylvester, Boy George, Prince and more, opens with a reception tonight from 6-9 p.m. and runs through April 25. It’s at Vivid Solutions Gallery inside the Anacostia Arts Center (1231 Good Hope Road, S.E.). Visit vividsolutionsgallery.com for full details.
Transformer (1404 P St., N.W.) is featuring “HOMOCATS: Fight the Power” by Brooklyn-based artist J. Morrison through March 15. Morrison, who is gay, combines the internet phenomenon of cats and socio-political LGBT issues on a psychedelic wallpaper design and printed c-prints. His work pays homage to historic queer symbols like the rainbow flag and pink triangle.

‘Behind Fourth Wall’ (Courtesy Royal Books)
AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center (8633 Colesville Rd., Silver Spring, Md.) and Royal Books presents “Behind the Fourth Wall: Actors and Directors on the Set, Photographs 1926-2001,” a behind-the-scenes movie exhibit. It opens today and runs through May 26. The exhibit is a collection of vintage behind-the-scenes of classic films from the silent era to the 20th century. The photos are candid and were taken by famous photographers such as Mario Tursi and Bob Willoughby, working professionals and anonymous photographers. For more details, visit afi.com/silver.
Kreeger Museum (2401 Foxhall Rd., N.W.) is currently featuring “K@20,” a celebration of the museum’s 20th anniversary, through July 31. The exhibit features 14 D.C.-area artists in a variety of mediums including installations, paintings, sculptures and paper to video. On April 16 from 6-7:30 p.m., a roundtable discussion will occur. For more information, visit kreegermuseum.com.
Touchstone Gallery (901 New York Ave., N.W.) presents “Light and Dark,” an exhibit that explores darkness and light in the spring equinox, through March 30. Touchstone member artists produced various forms of artwork such as ceramics, paintings, sculpture and drawing. For more details, visit touchstonegallery.com.
Corcoran Gallery (500 17th St., N.W.) features Rineke Dijkstra’s “The Krazyhouse, Liverpool UK, 2009” a four-channel video installation exhibit, March 29-June 15. Dikstra filmed guests at a popular dance club in Liverpool. It shows five young people (Megan, Simon, Nikky, Phillip and Dee) as they dance and sing to music they selected themselves. The half-hour show intends to look at each individual in a broader social spectrum.
Corcoran Gallery is also showing “Jennifer Steinkamp and Jimmy Johnson: Loop,” a visual art and music installation, March 15-April 20. Visitors are surrounded by digital colorful rope and can see their shadows on the walls. The combination makes for a multi-colored three dimension moving abstraction. Admission for the gallery is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and students and free for children under 12. Visit corcoran.org for more details.
Gallery B (770 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda, Md.) is showing “Ideal Form,” featuring paintings and drawings by artist Robert O’Brien, through March 29. O’Brien is a Maryland native and received his Certificate in Painting from Washington Studio School. His work has been shown in galleries throughout the area. For more details, visit bethesda.org.
Foundry Gallery (1314 18th St., N.W.) presents Ana Elisa Benavent’s “Shifting Gears” through March 30. Benavent uses color expressionism to demonstrate revival, healing, reinvention and change through a painting interpretation of riding in a car. Visit foundrygallery.org for more information.
The Phillips Collection (1600 21st St., N.W.) is showing “Intersections: 50-65 Horizon Line” by Jean Meisel, a D.C.-based artist, through May 4. The exhibit displays more than 50 watercolor paintings of horizon lines.

‘Edward Hopper’s Sunday’ (Courtesy Phillips Collection)
The Phillips Collection is also featuring “Made in the USA,” the most comprehensive on-site installation of the Phillip’s American collection to date, through Aug. 31. The exhibit includes prominent American artists of the late 19th century, as well as a display of Abstract Expressionists. Admission is $12 for adults, $10 for students and seniors and free for members and children under 12. Featured artists are Edward Hopper, Milton Avery, Man Ray and many more. Visit phillipscollection.org for details.
Artisphere (1101 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, Va.) presents “Coast to Coast” by Empty Stretch, an online photography curation group, April 2-Aug. 3 on the Town Hall Video Wall. Empty Stretch selected approximately 400 photographs that feature different coastlines and bodies of water. The photographs were collected through email submissions and Flickr. Visit artisphere.com for more details.
Hirshhorn (700 Independence Ave., S.W.) is featuring Santiago Sierra and Jorge Galindo in the Hirshhorn’s “Black Box” series with “Los Encargados (Those in Charge)” through May 18. Sierra staged a performance in 2012 with a motorcade of seven black Mercedes-Benz sedans with portraits of prominent Spanish leaders on top. By-standers filmed the spectacle on their phones and the footage can be seen in black and white.
The Smithsonian Craft Show is now in its 32nd year and scheduled for April 10-13 at the National Building Museum (401 F St., N.W.). It features 123 craft artists selected in a “quest for the best” and sale of limited edition and one-of-a-kind works available in 12 different media. Visit Smithsoniancraftshow.org for full details.
And though Gay Day isn’t until September, Hillwood Estate, Museum & Garden always has tons of great events, lectures and concerts on its slate. Visit hillwoodmuseum.org for full details.
Sports
Jason Collins dies at 47
First openly gay man to actively play for major sports team battled brain cancer
Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to actively play for a major professional sports team, died on Tuesday after a battle with brain cancer. He was 47.
The California native had briefly played for the Washington Wizards in 2013 before coming out in a Sports Illustrated op-ed.
Collins in 2014 became the first openly gay man to play in a game for a major American professional sports league when he played 11 minutes during a Brooklyn Nets game. He wore jersey number 98 in honor of Matthew Shepard, a gay college student murdered outside of Laramie, Wyo., in 1998.
Collins told the Washington Blade in 2014 that his life was “exponentially better” since he came out. Collins the same year retired from the National Basketball Association after 13 seasons.
Collins married his husband, Brunson Green, in May 2025.
The NBA last September announced Collins had begun treatment for a brain tumor. Collins on Dec. 11, 2025, announced he had Stage 4 glioblastoma.
“We are heartbroken to share that Jason Collins, our beloved husband, son, brother and uncle, has died after a valiant fight with glioblastoma,” said Collins’s family in a statement the NBA released. “Jason changed lives in unexpected ways and was an inspiration to all who knew him and to those who admired him from afar. We are grateful for the outpouring of love and prayers over the past eight months and for the exceptional medical care Jason received from his doctors and nurses. Our family will miss him dearly.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said Collins’s “impact and influence extended far beyond basketball as he helped make the NBA, WNBA, and larger sports community more inclusive and welcoming for future generations.”
“He exemplified outstanding leadership and professionalism throughout his 13-year NBA career and in his dedicated work as an NBA Cares Ambassador,” said Silver. “Jason will be remembered not only for breaking barriers, but also for the kindness and humanity that defined his life and touched so many others.”
“To call Jason Collins a groundbreaking figure for our community is simply inadequate. We truly lost a giant today,” added Human Rights Campaign President Kelley Robinson in a statement. “He came out as gay — while still playing — at a time when men’s athletes simply did not do that. But as he powerfully demonstrated in his final years in the league and his post-NBA career, stepping forward as he did boldly changed the conversation.”
“He was and will always be a legend for the LGBTQ+ community, and we are heartbroken to hear of his passing at the young age of 47,” she said. “Our hearts go out to his family and loved ones. We will keep fighting on in his honor until the day everyone can be who they are on their terms.”
Glitterati Productions held the “Studio 69” party at Bunker on Friday, May 8.
(Washington Blade photos by Michael Key)

















Arts & Entertainment
Washington Blade’s Pride on the Pier returns June 13 to kick off D.C. Pride week
Pride on the Pier officially launches Pride Week in D.C.
The Washington Blade’s annual Pride on the Pier celebration returns to The Wharf on Saturday, June 13, 2026 from 4-9 p.m., bringing thousands of LGBTQ community members and allies together for an unforgettable waterfront celebration to kick off Pride week in Washington, D.C.
Now in its eighth year, Washington Blade Pride on the Pier extends the city’s annual celebration of LGBTQ visibility to the bustling Wharf waterfront with an exciting array of activities and entertainment for all ages. The District Pier will offer DJs, dancing, drag, and other entertainment. Alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase for those 21 and older.
“Pride on the Pier has become one of the signature moments of Pride in D.C.,” said Lynne Brown, publisher of the Washington Blade. “There’s nothing like watching our community come together on the waterfront with live music and incredible energy as we kick off Pride week.”
Pride on the Pier is free and open to the public, with VIP tickets available for exclusive pier access to the Dockmaster Building. To purchase VIP tickets visit www.prideonthepierdc.com/vip.
Additional entertainment announcements, sponsor activations, and event details will be released in the coming weeks.
Event Details:
📍 Location: District Pier at The Wharf (101 District Sq SW, Washington, DC)
📅 Dates: Friday, 13, 2026
⏱️ 4-9PM
🎟️ VIP Tickets: www.PrideOnThePierDC.com/VIP

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