{"id":25727,"date":"2024-12-01T11:13:55","date_gmt":"2024-12-01T16:13:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/?p=25727"},"modified":"2024-12-01T11:16:11","modified_gmt":"2024-12-01T16:16:11","slug":"spoke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/2024\/12\/01\/spoke\/","title":{"rendered":"Spoke\u2019s World AIDS Day Vigil To Remember Those We\u2019ve Lost To AIDS"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

It was quiet at 8 Sunday morning at Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art<\/a> vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama, 539 Tremont St., Boston. I had the place nearly all to myself as the early morning light raked across shimmering blood red ribbons cascading down in the center of the giant room. The temporary monument to those we\u2019ve lost to AIDS feels solemn, hallowed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBegun in 1992 as a response to the enormity of loss due to the AIDS pandemic, the vigil has become an enduring testimony and gathering place for us to reflect, remember and celebrate the lives of loved ones,\u201d Michael Dowling, founder and artistic director of the nonprofit Spoke in Boston, has written. \u201cAlthough AIDS\/HIV was the invitation to create this project, it became obvious over the years that people needed space to grieve about many things. Today the installation is an enduring testimony to all those who have gone before.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s focus is an “end HIV stigma.\u201d As we again face an incoming presidential administration that attacks the LGBTQ+ community and threatens to cut government healthcare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s Spoke installation is a ring of shrines on wooden plinths encircling red ribbons suspended from the lighting grid above and falling down to a circle of black stones on the floor that are etched with names and faces. Twenty-four sections of the landmark, national AIDS Memorial Quilt are hung on the surrounding walls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The installation runs from midnight to midnight today, Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, a \u201c24-hour vigil of song, dance, music, ritual and prayer.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Previous Coverage:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2019: Photos: Annual AIDS Vigil at Boston Cyclorama<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2018: Landmark AIDS Memorial Quilt Joins Annual Boston AIDS Vigil At BCA<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

2017: Visiting Boston\u2019s Holy Shrine To Those We\u2019ve Lost To AIDS<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

If this is the kind of coverage of arts, cultures and activisms you appreciate, please support Wonderland by\u00a0contributing to Wonderland on Patreon<\/a>. And\u00a0sign up for our free, occasional newsletter<\/a>\u00a0so that you don’t miss any of our reporting. (All content \u00a9Greg Cook 2024 or the respective creato<\/em>rs.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Spoke\u2019s
Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama. (\u00a9Greg Cook photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It was quiet at 8 Sunday morning at Spoke\u2019s annual World AIDS Day: Day Without Art vigil at the Boston Center for the Arts Cyclorama, 539 Tremont St., Boston. I had the place nearly all to myself as the early morning light raked across shimmering blood red ribbons cascading down in the center of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":25711,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[100],"tags":[487,642,1019],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25727"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25727"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25727\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25737,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25727\/revisions\/25737"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25727"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25727"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gregcookland.com\/wonderland\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25727"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}