Gerardo Velázquez papers

Collection

Identifier: Coll2017-014

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Scope and Contents

The collection comprises writings, photographs, drawings, journals, videocassettes, chapbooks, personal papers and other materials (1973-2009) from multimedia artist and musician Gerardo Velázquez, best known as a founding member of the Los Angeles punk band Nervous Gender. The Writings, Drawings and Creative Works Series includes several self-published booklets of Velázquez's poems and artwork; publicity materials documenting his exhibitions and performances; unpublished writings and notes for works in progress; and materials created for Nervous Gender. The Personal Papers Series comprises journals, notebooks, correspondence, autobiographical writings, employment documents, legal records, school records, health records and other papers collected by Velázquez. The Photographs Series includes photographs created as elements for Velázquez's multimedia installations and photo essays, as well as personal photographs documenting his family and friends. The Sound and Video Recordings include the Nervous Gender album "Music from Hell," as well as video elements used for Velázquez's multimedia installations, including the exhibit entitled "Violation."

Dates

Creation: 1973 - 2009

Creator

Velázquez, Gerardo (Gerardo de Jesús), 1958-1992 (Person)

Language of Materials

The bulk of the collection materials are in English. Some materials are in Spanish.

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open to researchers. There are no access restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the ONE Archivist. Permission for publication is given on behalf of ONE National Gay and Lesbian Archives at USC Libraries as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained.

Biographical / Historical

Gerardo de Jesús Velázquez was born in Mexico in 1958. At a young age, he and his family moved to Los Angeles, where he later attended Stevenson Middle School in East Los Angeles. It was at Stevenson where he met his friend Michael Ochoa. The two later met Edward Stapleton and Phranc, and in 1978, the four of them would form the earliest iteration of the electropunk/technopunk band Nervous Gender. Nervous Gender recorded one album, Music From Hell, in 1981. Throughout the 1980s, when he was involved with Nervous Gender, Velázquez attended California State University Los Angeles (CSULA). He continued developing his own body of artwork that incorporated multiple disciplines and areas of study, including poetry, photography, digital art, video art, performance art, music, physics, biology, religion, and sexuality. During this time, he also had jobs as a graphic designer and computer technician. Velázquez died of AIDS-related complications in 1992.

Extent

7.8 Linear Feet (9 boxes.)

Additional Description

Abstract

Writings, photographs, drawings, journals, videocassettes, chapbooks, personal papers and other materials (1973-2009) from multimedia artist and musician Gerardo Velázquez, best known as a founding member of the Los Angeles punk band Nervous Gender. The bulk of the collection is Velázquez's writings and creative projects that include zine-like pamphlets and poetry books; elements for multimedia art installations; collages, drawings and photographic series; and publicity flyers and posters for Nervous Gender. The collection also includes personal papers such as journals, notebooks, school records, legal records, and materials documenting his HIV status.

Arrangement

This collection is divided into four series: (1) Writings, drawings and other creative works; (2) Personal papers; (3) Photographs; and (4) Sound and video recordings.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The bulk of the collection, including three paintings, was donated by Tammy Fraser and Joseph Zinnato on December 22, 2014. The remainder of the collection was donated by Edward Stapleton on August 1, 2015 and July 23, 2016.

Separated Materials

The following have been separated to the ONE Archives periodicals collection:

[AIDS Project Los Angeles] APLA Update (July/August 1990; March 1991; June 1991

[AIDS Project Los Angeles] Optimist (Fall 1990; Winter 1991; Summer 1991)

Being Alive newsletter (February 1991)

Vision, Monthly Bilingual Newsletter (May 1991)

The following have been separated to the ONE comic book collection:

Bloodstream Follies, 1989

Chicos Modernos, Vol. II, 1989

Separated Materials

The following paintings, all originally shown in his MFA thesis show Piss n' Blood at Cal State Los Angeles (December 9–13, 1990), have been separated to the ONE Archives Art Collection:

Gerardo Velázquez, The Neglected Martyr, 1990

Gerardo Velázquez, The Fantastical Disseminator, 1990

Gerardo Velázquez, Piss n' Blood, 1990