Visqueen at the vanity, readying for CHOKE HOLE's headlining performance in King's Hall, at September's LadyLand Festival
Linux in battle with her abs, worn with singlet and opera gloves
RAID, a post-apocalyptic insect, spends a tranquil moment backstage
The New Orleans-based CHOKE HOLE — named for the fictional post-apocalyptic setting in which it takes place — recently ventured north into New York City. It was the nascent wrestling promotion's first event since the beginning of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, made doubly significant in the wake of Hurricane Ida (which devastated both New Orleans and New York).
Per the promoters, the show "places a queer lens on the traditionally machismo world of wrestling, using drag and queer performance to intensify the inherently flamboyant and camp elements of professional wrestling, [showcasing] lip sync performances, choreographed wrestling matches, acting, character building, and pre-recorded 'backstage drama' videos.”
NOTES FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHER:
"My goal as a photographer is subversion of gaze. I take an intimate look at performers away from the ring, stripped of all pretense and expectation. Person to person. Artist to artist. CHOKE HOLE calls to me as a person who works in the lush and surreal. Their work is full of genuine love for wrestling, and hope. The textures are bold and so are the artists behind it.”