Serge Gay Jr. Art Commissions for Historic Celebration of Cleve Jones' 70th Birthday

Collect A Piece of History! Support the Preservation of the 37 year old AIDS Memorial Quilt!

The National AIDS Memorial is partnering with local San Francisco Bay Area artist, Serge Gay Jr. to commemorate Cleve Jones's 70th Birthday via eight iconic art pieces that evoke and highlight Jones' decades-long journey of activism and getting things done for the community.

Cleve founded the AIDS Memorial Quilt 37 years ago. Its legacy lives on and continues to educate the public all while fighting hate and stigma.

All donation proceeds from the virtual art auction will support the current operations and long term preservation of the AIDS Memorial Quilt for future generations across the world.

"I have long felt that the making of quilts is one of the greatest American art forms, because quilts not only give comfort and warmth, but also say so much about heritage and family traditions that give meaning to our lives. I don't think any blanket in history has given so much comfort to so many as the AIDS Memorial Quilt."

--Coretta Scott King

Thank you for your support and love of the AIDS Memorial Quilt.

National AIDS Memorial Team

About the Artist: Serge Gay Jr.

Serge Gay Jr. is an American visual artist and creative designer in San Francisco, California. He has always been an artist. It is a talent coursing in his blood. As a child, his drawing skills were instrumental in connecting with his classmates and teachers. Art was their common language because Serge and his family were recent immigrants to the U.S. from Haiti.

The investment in Serge's art skills continued on from those early days. Beyond his informal self-teaching, formal studies and practice began as an adolescent at a Magnet Arts High School in Miami, Florida. Then on to the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan, where he refined his illustrative skills and stirred his interest in history, especially that of the rich and the poor and the so-called civil rights that seem to keep them divided.

After his formative college experiences both on-campus and off, Serge relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area in California to pursue an art career. In the decades and years since, his skill and experience have grown to span a prolific range of visual art engagements, including graphic design for commercial and small business use, art directing for recorded and live performances, solo and group gallery exhibitions, in-door and out-door event art, general commissions, and both public and private murals throughout the Bay Area.

When working on art for himself, Serge infuses inspiration reflective of urban realities from coast to coast. Keen to the racial and economic challenges of our time, influenced by the culture of his homeland, and melded with his life experiences, his voice and the motivation in his work is crisp and clear. His aesthetic incorporates the grit of New York, the beauty of Miami, the wealth of Detroit, and the freedom of San Francisco. All of these places, in their own way, permeate the evolution of his work.
When producing art for others, the acumen he demonstrates, the professionalism he provides, and the listening skills he uses are all at the ready to deliver. Serge's concern is for the project's outcome and meeting the client's vision for their brand or desired aesthetic. A trusted advisor on all things colorful and graphic, his expertise is sought out because he is dependable and he makes art that speaks and feels like no other.

Serge owns and operates SergeShop, a graphic design and visual arts company. He is also a freelance visual art director working with film and video production design teams in Los Angeles, California. One of the major projects he worked on, with longtime collaborator and film director Matt Stawski, yielded a Grammy nomination for best short-form music video. They continue to collaborate on ongoing video and film production projects.

Additionally, above and beyond producing murals and other visual art that amplify LGBTQIA+ voices, Serge has taken action on behalf of a broader sense of community, having served on the board for the Friends of Harvey Milk Plaza and separately having produced projects with local community benefit districts, the California Health and Human Services Agency, and the United States Consulate working in partnership with the State Department of Cultural Affairs, plus many other organizations.

About Cleve Jones

Cleve Jones is a world-renowned LGBTQ+ activist and author who has dedicated his life to advocating for LGBTQ+ rights and health. Born in 1954, Jones began his activism in the 1970s as a protégé of Harvey Milk, one of the first openly gay elected officials in the United States. He continued his activism in the wake of Milk’s assassination.

In addition to his enormous contributions via co-founding the San Francisco AIDS Foundation (SFAF) and the AIDS Memorial Quilt "the Quilt," Cleve has remained a prominent voice for equality and justice throughout his career. Cleve has worked with UNITE HERE, a labor union that represents 270,000 workers across Canada and the United States, for immigrant rights, marriage rights and more.

He has written extensively about his experiences and the broader struggle for LGBTQ+ rights, most notably in his memoir "When We Rise: My Life in the Movement." Jones's work has earned him numerous awards and recognition, cementing his legacy as a pivotal figure in the fight for LGBTQ+ rights and the battle against HIV/AIDS. His contributions have not only raised awareness, but have also inspired generations of activists to continue the fight for a more inclusive and just society.

About the AIDS Memorial Quilt

The AIDS Memorial Quilt (“the Quilt”) is an epic, 54-ton tapestry that includes over 50,000 panels dedicated to more than 110,000 individuals who died from AIDS.

○ Displayed for the first time on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. in 1987 - it covered a space larger than a football field and included 1,920 panels

○ The largest community folk art project in the world, the Quilt increases HIV/AIDS awareness and engages individuals and communities to fight against HIV/AIDS + take action to advance health and social justice

○ The Quilt is recognized under the Save America’s Treasures Program Act as an American Treasure

○ Nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize, and is the preeminent global symbol for the human response to AIDS

○ The last display of the entire AIDS Memorial Quilt was in October of 1996 when the Quilt covered the entire National Mall in Washington, D.C. with an estimated 1.2 million people coming to view it. The Clintons and Gores attended the display, marking the first visit by a sitting president of the United States

○ The Quilt travels to more than 500 communities annually, directly touching an estimated 1.5M+ people

○ The Quilt includes panels (3’x6’) from every U.S. state, most U.S. territories, and 50 countries

○ More than 20 million people have viewed its panels at thousands of displays over the past 37 years

About the National AIDS Memorial

The vision of the National AIDS Memorial is that never again will a community be harmed because of fear, silence, discrimination, or stigma. Imparting the history and lessons of AIDS is at the core of our work, and through our iconic AIDS Memorials and inspiring programs, we seek to ensure that the story of AIDS, and the AIDS Movement, is known by current and future generations; that they stay engaged in the fight against HIV; be inspired to advance health, racial, and social justice efforts; and embrace diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice.

The National AIDS Memorial is the steward of our nation's two most notable AIDS Memorials: The 10-acre National AIDS Memorial Grove (“the Grove”) and the 54-ton AIDS Memorial Quilt (“the Quilt”), both created and located in San Francisco.

Both memorials were created by hundreds of thousands of grieving loved ones and through their respective storytelling qualities, reveal the humanity behind the statistics, invoke compassion, and dispel discrimination and stigma. There are no more powerful visual reminders of the toll AIDS has taken than the National AIDS Memorial Grove and the AIDS Memorial Quilt — they are both profoundly powerful prevention tools, which convey the enormity of loss caused by the AIDS pandemic.

Support our work here. Thank you for your support!

In community,

National AIDS Memorial Team

Goes Hollywood, 2024