Hanky Code Series

Water based Screenprinting ink on cotton fabric

22 X 22 inches

2024

The Hanky Code has been a staple of queer history, where starting in the 70’s predominantly gay men would wear color coded bandanas to flag to other men that they were gay, and what they are into. There are plenty of colors and patterns that mean different kinks/fetishes/sex acts. Placement of the hanky also tells if you are a giver or receiver of the code. Worn on the right means bottom, worn in the left means top. Switches can wear it around their neck or wear two.

This was a way to be discrete especially as homophobia rises because of the AIDs crisis and to avoid hate crimes or being arrested by cops. This was also practice by all sorts of queer people such as lesbians, bisexuals, transgender people, kinksters, and much more. Nowadays because of the internet and general integration of queer life into the public it is not as well known or needed as it was, but you can still find all kinds of people in the kink-queer and leather community flagging.