The acquisition of Gay Semiotics (1977) by the Gallery of Modern Art in Glasgow (GoMA) coincided with two more of Fischer’s photo collections from this period entering its collection: 18th near Castro St. x 24 (1978) and Boy-Friends (1979).

Fischer belonged to the loose-knit Photography and Language group which pioneered the use of words as pictures in their own right. He became interested in combining photographs with text in a way that expanded, reinterpreted or contradicted the imagery. All three of his
collections explore the lives of gay men in San Francisco in a way that combines humour
with structuralist theory or journalism.

Fischer’s three seminal projects now join GoMA’s significant holdings of work by and about LGBTQI+ artists and their experience.

Provenance

A new editions of the work (16 / 45) will be printed in San Francisco overviewed by the artist, Hal Fischer.