Soho art exhibition spotlighting the urgent dangers of chemsex
A new exhibition exploring the impact of chemsex will open in central London next weekend.
Running on the 4th and 5th October, Chemtrail: This Is Killing Us uses art, photography, and dance to share stories of resilience and recovery.
It has been organised by Impulse London, a volunteer-led group founded in 2017 that focuses on the health and well-being of Queer men.
The exhibition aims to show available support services for and reduce shame about chemsex, a practice that combines sex with drug use.
Organisers say the exhibition exists to educate queer men about the impact of chemsex and the strength of those who have survived their experiences with it.
Photographer Matt Ford filmed and photographed the interviews that form the visual heart of the show at his studio in Hackney.
When asked about why photography was a better choice to discuss the issue than traditional means, he said: “Listening to people talk about their recovery and what they went through made the risks very real.”
He added: “It’s something you can’t ignore once you’ve heard it directly. It’s so much more powerful than just numbers on a page”.
These interviews form the centre of the exhibition, alongside other artworks from the queer community, such as ROCKBOTTOM, a dance performance reflecting on a man’s near-death experience at the hands of chemsex.
Charlie Reynolds, marketing director at Impulse London, said the project also seeks to educate queer men about how engaging in chemsex can affect not only the user, but also their relatives, partners, and friends.
He added: “One installation presents recorded voicemails from a family pleading with their loved one to come home. When I listened to those messages, I imagined my own mum calling me, which made the impact tangible. “
According to aidsmap.com, gay men who engage in chemsex are five times more likely to have a new HIV diagnosis than those who don’t.
Impulse has also found that many young gay men find themselves attending chemsex parties due to gay loneliness and peer pressure.
Reynolds said: “I think if the AIDS crisis taught us anything, it’s that as a community, we do need to come together, give people a space where they can talk about their experiences with no judgment.”
Impulse London is also inviting new volunteers to sign up to help create supportive spaces for queer men and be part of future projects.
Tickets are free and available here.
Chemtrail: This Is Killing Us: 4th–5th October, 12pm to 8pm, 15 Bateman Street, Soho, W1D 3AQ.