RIP Honey Lee Cottrell, photographer
September 27, 2015 1:38 PM Subscribe
Photographer Honey Lee Cottrell died on September 21st of this year. She was a cofounder and the first staff photographer for the lesbian erotica magazine, "On Our Backs". Some of her photography may be found in the Digital Culture of Metropolitan New York. Her papers will be cared for by the Cornell University Library Human Sexuality Collection.
[NOTE: Most of the following links contain explicit sexual images]
"On Our Backs" was the first lesbian sex magazine, and Honey Lee was the staff photographer. The magazine's office was located, and many of their early photo shoots were done, in the apartment Cottrell shared with her partner and fellow OOB founder, Susie Bright, who wrote a moving obituary for Cottrell. Some of Cottrell's photos of women pleasuring themselves were published as the book I Am My Lover
[NOTE: Most of the following links contain explicit sexual images]
"On Our Backs" was the first lesbian sex magazine, and Honey Lee was the staff photographer. The magazine's office was located, and many of their early photo shoots were done, in the apartment Cottrell shared with her partner and fellow OOB founder, Susie Bright, who wrote a moving obituary for Cottrell. Some of Cottrell's photos of women pleasuring themselves were published as the book I Am My Lover
Her queer spirit gave allowance to lives outside boundries. She was a pioneer.
posted by PinkMoose at 2:00 PM on September 27, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by PinkMoose at 2:00 PM on September 27, 2015 [2 favorites]
The apartment link reveals that Susie is being evicted from her home of over 20 years, from which much of the rest of the stuff linked emanated. That seems like an almost meta-level tragedy on top of the death of Honey Lee.
posted by Bringer Tom at 2:00 PM on September 27, 2015
posted by Bringer Tom at 2:00 PM on September 27, 2015
The apartment link is from 2011, so I think the eviction has probably already happened.
posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 2:03 PM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by ArbitraryAndCapricious at 2:03 PM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
Yes, it seemed that Honey Lee was still alive when it was written. I had not been keeping up though although I knew of these womens' work in the late 80's and early 90's and this is my catch-up on what happened since then, and it's very sad.
posted by Bringer Tom at 2:12 PM on September 27, 2015
posted by Bringer Tom at 2:12 PM on September 27, 2015
I started up an article for her on Wikipedia a few weeks ago when she was honored by San Francisco's city government for her contributions to art, culture, and feminism. If you feel like improving the article, please go for it!
posted by geeklizzard at 2:43 PM on September 27, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by geeklizzard at 2:43 PM on September 27, 2015 [2 favorites]
God damn it; our forebearers keep dying. I'm not a lesbian nor a woman, but I sold a metric ton of On Our Backsto people who desperately needed those words and pictures. She made a lot of days (and nights, imagine) better.
And she fought the Union fight. God damn.
.
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:10 PM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
And she fought the Union fight. God damn.
.
posted by GenjiandProust at 3:10 PM on September 27, 2015 [1 favorite]
Jesus. It is literally impossible to overstate the ground-breaking work and incredible influence Honey Lee Cottrell and On Our Backs contributed to contemporary feminism and sex-positive education. Poor Susie Bright. Poor world.
posted by DarlingBri at 4:35 PM on September 27, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by DarlingBri at 4:35 PM on September 27, 2015 [4 favorites]
.
posted by gingerbeer at 9:04 PM on September 27, 2015
posted by gingerbeer at 9:04 PM on September 27, 2015
She was a pioneering artist. And we are better for her work, and so grateful.
.
posted by missmary6 at 10:30 PM on September 27, 2015
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posted by missmary6 at 10:30 PM on September 27, 2015
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posted by fiercecupcake at 8:17 AM on September 28, 2015
posted by fiercecupcake at 8:17 AM on September 28, 2015
♥
posted by Halloween Jack at 11:42 AM on September 28, 2015
posted by Halloween Jack at 11:42 AM on September 28, 2015
Well, shit. I'm hosting one of her gay male contemporary photographers this coming weekend, so I suppose we'll talk about her a lot.
Without HL Cottrell and the other creative dykes she encouraged, queer art culture and non-mainstream porn would literally look different today. We might not have the feminist revival of burlesque/boylesque if not for touring dyke strip shows emanating from the same Cottrell-Bright-Sundahl-Hollibaugh (and Dorothy Allison and Pat Califia, among others) friend and lover network.
*
posted by Dreidl at 5:48 PM on September 28, 2015 [3 favorites]
Without HL Cottrell and the other creative dykes she encouraged, queer art culture and non-mainstream porn would literally look different today. We might not have the feminist revival of burlesque/boylesque if not for touring dyke strip shows emanating from the same Cottrell-Bright-Sundahl-Hollibaugh (and Dorothy Allison and Pat Califia, among others) friend and lover network.
*
posted by Dreidl at 5:48 PM on September 28, 2015 [3 favorites]
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posted by Dip Flash at 1:44 PM on September 27, 2015