Tom Bianchi's Gay New York: 1975-1983
"New York’s streets, bars and clubs provided a safe space for us to connect with like-minded libido-driven souls. Day or night, my Ninth Street apartment existed as a stage designed for play."
Hello—
Today we explore photographer Tom Bianchi’s time spent in New York City between 1975-1983. The photos below are featured in his book, 63 E 9th Street: NYC Polaroids 1975–1983 which you can purchase here.
The photos are a treasure trove of gay nostalgia for a time before apps, and all number of other distractions. This was a time when cruising was done IRL and homosexuals were finding freedom in cities far away from the judgmental institutions of family and church that they grew up in.
Tom now lives in Palm Springs. We visited his house there a few years back. He grows some really delicious weed, and it’s safe to say the lifestyle depicted in the images below has carried on to his current residence in the desert, even as Tom moves into his later years.
Please enjoy this trip back to gay ‘ol nyc with us and Tom Bianchi.
-Tom & Abi
TEXT AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY TOM BIANCHI
I was about 25 when I discovered that a walk down Christopher Street in Manhattan was as cruisy as a walk down the beach in the Pines.
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