Gilbert Baker (artist)

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gilbert Baker (2012)

Gilbert Baker (born June 2, 1951 in Chanute , Kansas ; died March 31, 2017 in New York City ) was an American artist and activist of the lesbian and gay movement . In 1978 he designed the rainbow flag as its worldwide symbol.

Life

Gilbert Baker grew up in Parsons, Kansas, along with his sister Ardonna, the son of a teacher and a judge. His grandmother was the owner of a women's boutique there. He spent a year in college before serving in the US Army from 1970 to 1972 . As a stationed soldier in San Francisco, he experienced the beginnings of the women's, civil rights and gay movements. After his honorable discharge from the Army, he taught himself the tailoring trade.

In 1978, Baker created the first conception of the rainbow flag as a member of a gay movement collective. He refused to protect the design as he saw it as a symbol of the LGBT community.

From 1979 he worked for the Paramount Flag Company in San Francisco . Among other things, he made designs for Dianne Feinstein , the Prime Minister of China, the Presidents of France, Venezuela and the Philippines and the King of Spain. He also designed creations for various civil society events and the San Francisco Gay Pride . In 1984 he designed flags for the Democratic National Convention .

In 1994 Baker moved to New York City, where he lived until his death. In the same year, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Stonewall Riots of 1969, he created the world's largest flag at the time. In 2003, he broke his own record with a rainbow flag that stretched 1.25 miles from the Gulf of Mexico to Key West on the Atlantic. He then sent pieces of this flag to 100 cities around the world.

Baker often used the drag queen name "Busty Ross". The name refers to Baker's creation of the rainbow flag and creates a connection to Betsy Ross , who is said to have sewn the first flag of the United States . Gilbert Baker died at the age of 65 of his cardiovascular disease caused by high blood pressure .

Trivia

On June 2, 2017, Baker's 66th birthday and 63 days after his death, Google posted a rainbow flag doodle to show his respect.

Web links

Commons : Gilbert Baker  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Erin Allday: Gilbert Baker, designer of gay pride rainbow flag, dies. In: San Francisco Chronicle. April 1, 2017, accessed April 2, 2017 .
  2. ^ Ana Swanson: How the rainbow became the symbol of gay pride . The Washington Post. Retrieved June 29, 2015.
  3. ↑ https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/31/us/obituary-gilbert-baker-rainbow-flag.html
  4. ^ Gilbert Baker, Gay Activist Who Created the Rainbow Flag, Dies at 65 . In: The New York Times , March 31, 2017. Retrieved April 1, 2017. 
  5. ↑ @onlyinsf - Official visitor information for San Francisco: A Brief History of the Rainbow Flag. In: http://www.sftravel.com . San Francisco Travel Association, 2017, accessed 2017 .
  6. ↑ The Gay Betsy Ross on YouTube
  7. ^ Gilbert Baker, rainbow flag creator, dies. April 6, 2016, accessed June 2, 2017 .
  8. ↑ Kim Berkemeyer: Gilbert Baker: Google Doodle honors creators of the rainbow symbolism. In: chip.de. June 2, 2017. Retrieved June 2, 2017 .
personal data
SURNAME Baker, Gilbert
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American artist and activist of the lesbian and gay movement
DATE OF BIRTH June 2, 1951
PLACE OF BIRTH Chanute , Kansas , United States
DATE OF DEATH March 31, 2017
Place of death New York City , New York , United States