David Wojnarowicz

David Wojnarowicz (David Michael Wojnarowicz, September 14, 1954 – July 22, 1992) was an American painter, photographer, writer, filmmaker, performance artist, songwriter/recording artist, and outspoken AIDS activist whose work defined the East Village avant‑garde scene of the 1980s. Born in Red Bank, New Jersey, he endured a turbulent childhood marked by physical abuse from his father and a chaotic upbringing that included periods of homelessness, street hustling in Times Square, and residence in halfway houses, experiences that later infused his art with raw, autobiographical intensity. After graduating from the High School of Music & Art in Manhattan, he emerged in the late 1970s as a prolific creator of mixed‑media installations, stencil graffiti, and super‑8 films such as Heroin and Beautiful People, collaborating with musicians like 3 Teens Kill 4 and artists including Nan Goldin, Peter Hujar, and Karen Finley. His photographic series on Arthur Rimbaud (1977‑1979) and iconic images like “Untitled (Buffaloes)” gained critical acclaim and were later used by U2 for the single One.

In the mid‑1980s Wojnarowicz’s practice shifted toward overt political activism after the death of his lover and mentor Peter Hujar from AIDS; he adopted Hujar’s loft as his studio, producing the powerful “Sex Series” and confronting governmental neglect through video works such as Listen to This (1992). He fought legal battles to protect his artistic rights, notably suing the American Family Association, and his participation in the 1985 Whitney Biennial cemented his status as a leading voice against the Reagan‑Bush era’s homophobic policies. His memoirs Close to the Knives and Memories That Smell Like Gasoline offered stark reflections on his childhood, artistic rise, and terminal illness. Wojnarowicz died of AIDS‑related complications at age 37, but his legacy endures through posthumous exhibitions, the 2018 Whitney retrospective, and ongoing cultural references, illustrating the enduring power of his uncompromising vision.