Yabu Pushelberg presents exhibition on HIV activism in partnership with UNAIDS

Yabu Pushelberg, the international creative design studio founded by George Yabu and Glenn Pushelberg in 1980, with studios in New York and Toronto, is presenting Don’t Stop. Stand Up!, a multi-week exhibition and cultural programming series exploring the history of LGBTQIA+ identity, activism, and resilience in response to HIV/AIDS through photography, archival works, cultural artifacts, conversation, and community gathering.

Presented at Yabu Pushelberg’s New York studio in partnership with the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), the exhibition marks the studio’s first collaboration with the United Nations (UN). It traces the social, political, and human history of the AIDS epidemic and highlights the UN’s goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 through public engagement and social mobilization.

From now until July 18, the exhibition and programming series aim to connect with audiences across New York City’s culture, design, fashion, media, and advocacy sectors, engaging local communities in panel discussions and encouraging them to take personal action to help end the AIDS epidemic.

Don’t Stop. Stand Up! profiles the activists and communities who shaped New York City’s sexual liberation movement of the 1960s and 1970s, fought back against the early devastation of the AIDS epidemic, and contributed to the evolution of queer visibility.

The exhibition serves as a global call to action, highlighting that AIDS is not over, and that ending AIDS by 2030 is achievable with renewed efforts to accelerate progress free of stigma and discrimination.

The exhibition will feature Andy, Candy, and Me, photography from the personal archive of Tony Mansfield (photographer unknown), including images of Andy Warhol, Candy Darling, and members of The Factory. It will also include AIDS Is Not Over, featuring a selection of panels from the US AIDS Memorial Quilt and historic videos from the UNAIDS archives.

It will also feature AIDS at The New School: What is Remembered?, curated by New School alum Stan Walden, and Your Shame Bores Me, a body of work by queer artist and photographer Christopher Sherman.

“For more than four decades, our studio has designed spaces and objects that foster a more beautiful, harmonious world,” said Glenn Pushelberg.

“With Don’t Stop. Stand Up!, we’re challenging our creative and professional communities to mobilize their collective influence to advance the end of AIDS,” added George Yabu.

Yabu Pushelberg’s Salon Series is an ongoing cultural platform of intimate, invite-only talks, panels, and gatherings hosted at the studio’s New York and Toronto locations. Bringing together voices from design, art, fashion, activism, and public life to reflect on the ideas shaping contemporary culture, the platform will anchor public engagement throughout the Don’t Stop. Stand Up! exhibition and related events.

The programming debuted on June 18 with an exclusive preview of the exhibition and an inaugural Salon conversation featuring Vinay Saldanha, director of the UNAIDS New York Office, Regan Hofmann, UNAIDS senior advisor, and Glenn Pushelberg.

Their discussion examined progress in the global HIV response while addressing the continued impact of HIV among queer communities, women, children, and Indigenous Peoples worldwide.

Additional programming includes a reception to mark the closing of the UN General Assembly High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS hosted by MAN OF PARTS, a special live event celebrating 2SLGBTQIA+ voices hosted by Christopher Sherman, an HIV/AIDS & The Community panel discussion, and a Rainbow Railroad fundraiser hosted by Tribù and West Out East.

The exhibition is open from 12:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Tuesday to Saturday, at Yabu Pushelberg’s 66 White Street gallery in Tribeca, New York City. Daily admission is free, and reservations can be made via Eventbrite.