Event Review: HAMMER! A Queer Life in Art and Film

     I attended the Barbara Hammer events not really sure what to expect. Until briefly talking about her in my Women's Studies class and then doing my own research before the events, I had little idea of who she was and what she's done. But upon sitting down in Golden Auditorium, seeing her work, and hearing her talk about her life, experiences and films, I realized the incredible contributions she has made not only to film and media but to important topics in society such as gender roles, sexuality, and lesbian relationships. Throughout her lifetime she has made many independent films that are all quirky and fascinating in their own right. Each film explores different concepts and ideas that Hammer has come across through her lifetime. She delves into the lesbian lifestyle in many of her works creating documentaries of lesbian women of the past as well as current lesbians within society after noticing that little has been documented about lesbian life. She claims that she has wanted to build a foundation for the LGBTQ community of the world to stand on and grow from, and that foundation is history. One striking thing she said during her presentation was that it was often extremely difficult to collect history and evidence on lesbian women. She was not allowed to state her sexuality or why she had come to the archives for fear of the evidence being burned and lost forever. Not only has Hammer left an impact on the LGBTQ community, she has also created films related to many other aspects of society. One of her most recent works which had never been shown before was centered around her concern about the environment and how human impact has been severely affecting the Louisiana waterways. 

     We are truly fortunate to have had Barbara Hammer visit Colgate for the culminating events of QueerFest. I was I had known sooner what a tremendous woman she is and how she has impacted society. Her story was enthralling, paired beautifully with films, each of which are a clever wonderful experiment. They truly showed her growth as well as reflecting changes in society since the 1970's.