Curated by Icon International Mother Twiggy Pucci Garçon, Legendary NYC Mother Jonovia Chase Lanvin, and Icon Ballroom Hall of Famer Founder Michael Roberson Maison-Margiela

Exhibition text by Fatima Jamal and Mikelle Street

On View: July 25 – September 21, 2025

The house ballroom community is a working-class Black, Nuyorican, and Latinx queer and trans cultural formation that emerged in New York City during the 1960s and which grew out of the African American drag ball scene of late-19th century Harlem. The community is organized around an alternative kinship system of cross-generational, non-biological families called “Houses.” “Mothers” and “Fathers” provide members, or “children,” with safety, social and economic support, as well as training and mentorship in Ballroom’s expressive traditions. During “Balls”—ritual events where Houses compete with one another in various performance categories—competitors are judged by a panel of peers, usually masterful artists known as “Legends” and “Icons,” on their skill, attitude, effect (costume) and adherence to the category.

Preserving Our Legacy is one of a three-part exhibition series, co-organized by City Lore, ArtsWestchester, and Pioneer Works, focused on the cultural legacy and community impact of House Ballroom.

At City Lore, the Legendary Looks curators spotlight select House Ballroom community leaders, including Pioneer Founder RR Chanel, Pioneer Alvernian Du’Mure-Versailles and include Reign Supreme Queen Mother Baby Garçon and their efforts to preserve House Ballroom culture and history. The multimedia exhibition features collections of ball flyers, archival photos and video, original effects, as well as video and audio excerpts from oral history interviews recorded and collected by the curators.

See below for information about exhibitions and programming at partner sites.

Legendary Looks: The Art of Effects Design in House Ballroom (May 31 – August 17, 2025 at ArtsWestchester) Featuring a multimedia installation and over 30 unforgettable looks created by some of ballroom’s top designers, stylists and walkers.

Legendary Looks: My Ballroom Story (June 6-August 10, 2025 at Pioneer Works) Featuring a multimedia installation by Felix Rodriguez, a filmmaker who has documented the Ballroom scene since the 1990s.

About the Curators

Legendary NYC Mother Jonovia Chase of Xclusive Lanvin is a community stakeholder, producer, runway icon and creative force based in New York City. She represents House Lives Matter, an international initiative created by and for the House community and leads and collaborates with various organizations on initiatives focused on intersectional social justice and activism. Together with other community leaders, she co-founded the non-profit Venus Pellagatti Xtravaganza House, aimed at providing housing, healthcare and educational support for the trans and LGBTQ community in New Jersey, in partnership with Garden State Equality, Hudson Pride and House Lives Matter. Chase proudly serves as the NYC Mother of the Legendary House of Xclusive Lanvin and works as a consultant for Arts Westchester, New York University and the NYC Kiki Coalition. She is an executive producer for I’m Your Venus and is the curator of Fem Queen Honors, taking place this June at the Apollo Theater.

Icon International Mother Twiggy Pucci Garçon is a community organizer, director, producer, culture curator and performance artist. She worked to develop and implement organizational programs and movement-wide strategy at True Colors United for nearly a decade, protecting rights for young people experiencing homelessness. She has collaborated with Gucci, Coach, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, GLAAD, Adidas, Reebok and many other brands, artists, filmmakers, academics and policymakers to increase visibility of both creative and sociopolitical agendas. Twiggy is the International Mother of the Legendary International House of Comme des Garçons, the Chief Ambassador for the Center for Black Equity and Co-Founder of All Tea, No Shade Productions. She co-wrote Sara Jordenö’s award-winning documentary KIKI, is the Executive Producer of the Emmy-nominated dramatic reading All Boys Aren’t Blue and Director of MnM, a short documentary film slated for broadcast on POV/PBS this summer. Twiggy is a 2023 Concordia Fellow, where she is developing her first feature-length documentary, CROWNED.

Icon Ballroom Hall of Famer Founder Michael Roberson Maison-Margiela is a leader, public health practitioner, activist, artist, and curator within the House Ballroom community, and is one of the most important figures in Ballroom today. He is the founder of three major Houses and is Father to hundreds of children in the community. Roberson works as Adjunct Professor at The New School and Union Theological Seminary, where he teaches courses on Ballroom history and Vogue’ology, a pedagogy that places Ballroom’s performance traditions within a politics of emancipation. He is also founder of The Federation of Ballroom Houses and co-creator of the National Black Gay Men’s Advocacy Group, an organization focused on tackling health disparities within Black/Latino LGBTQ+ and HBC communities.

About the Co-presenters

ArtsWestchester (ArtsW), established in 1965, is one of New York state’s largest private, not-for-profit cultural service organizations. ArtsW’s core offerings include a grants program for Westchester and Rockland-based artists & cultural orgs; a folk arts program that presents, promotes and preserves the artistic expressions of the region’s cultural communities through collaborative programming; and an exhibitions program that has shown the work of over 4,000 regional artists in 75+ exhibitions. It is one of few arts organizations in the U.S. with an ongoing commitment to supporting the expressive practices of House Ballroom. Since 2019, ArtsW has presented over 25 House Ballroom-led programs; and has helped administer over $400K in direct public and private support for HBC artists and organizations. A leading funder and advocate for the arts, ArtsW works to create an equitable, inclusive, vibrant and sustainable community in which the arts are integral to and integrated into every facet of life.

Pioneer Works is an artist and scientist-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit cultural center in Red Hook, Brooklyn that fosters innovative thinking through the visual and performing arts, technology, music, and science. We provide visual and performing artists, musicians, scientists, technologists, community organizers, and educators the resources and platform they need to expand their practices. Our approach encourages experimentation and empowers curious minds across diverse communities, knowledge bases, and frames of reference; in so doing, Pioneer Works aims to accelerate culture through the free exchange of ideas and information for all.

Legendary Looks: Preserving Our Legacy is made possible with support from the Coby Foundation, Ltd. and the Mid Atlantic Folk and Traditional Arts – Community Projects program of Mid Atlantic Arts. The exhibition at City Lore is supported by the André and Elizabeth Kertész Foundation, La Vida Feliz Foundation, the Lily Auchincloss Foundation, and the Scherman Foundation, as well as public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in Partnership with the City Council, as well as the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.