Fire Island Pines, America’s most famous gay village, is synonymous with the kind of affluent, white and distinctly cis male who seems far removed from many folks’ experience of queerness. However, in their latest project, Jimi Urquiaga – a costume designer, producer, creative director and drag queen – is keen to deconstruct this one-dimensional view of the queer holiday destination.
During the summer months, Urquiaga works on Fire Island – both in the plant shop Camp and as a landscaper for the island’s homeowners. From this vantage point, the creative has been able to experience life in the Pines from a different perspective than the mostly white and middle class depictions we often see in the media. Socialising with other folks working the holiday season, they got to know a more diverse, insider view of the island – and wanted to do something to celebrate their experiences.
So, in 2023, Urquiaga was moved to create an ongoing photo series which captured the Pines’ predominantly POC staff. Urquiaga worked with photographer Carmen DeCristo to create editorial photography starring their drag alter-ego Missleidy Rodriguez and staff from across the Pines in front of the businesses they worked at. The result? Joyful photos of this vibrant community posing on the boardwalk or the beach, in front of bars and food joints, while in full, fabulous glam.
Now, Urquiaga and DeCristo have teamed up for The Pines Summer of ‘24 – a second iteration of the project, which also features photography from Nabil Marebet, a bartender on the island. With a queer, Scarface theme, the editorial imagery allows for a satire of the power dynamics at play while lofi, spontaneous photos documented across polaroids and disposable cameras puts the IRL bond between staff on full display. More wide-ranging and extensive than its earlier rendition, the latest photo series provides an outlet for the workers to explore the working conditions on the island.
However, as Urquiaga reflects below, the island is beginning a process of much-needed change. Activities like Doll Invasion (co-founded by former GAY TIMES Editor Fran Tirado) and Papi Juice parties are pushing for greater inclusion of trans and POC members of the community, while the Fire Island Pines commercial district has just come under new ownership – opening up the possibility for a brighter, more inclusive future.
How did this project first come about and what inspired it?
During the summer months, I work in Fire Island Pines at the plant shop Camp and also do landscaping for the homeowners on the island. Last year I started “Pines Summer of 23″ as a way to celebrate the staff that works in the Pines. All of the iconic Fire Island photography up to that point was mainly focused on white men, so I wanted to capture the predominantly POC staff that goes uncelebrated in an artistic way.
I knew that I wanted to create a second instalment this year and I set out to capture the full summer, from beginning to end, through polaroids and disposable cameras; documenting us at work and off the clock, at parties and at huge events during the summer like the 4th of July or the Pines Party. I also wanted to create an editorial story to juxtapose the candid real life photos of our summer. In the first instalment shot by Carmen DeCristo, the backdrops for those photos were all the businesses that we worked at. For this instalment, I wanted to focus more on the architecture and interior design of the iconic houses of the Pines.
Carmen came on board to be a part of this series again and – with the sponsorship of Exposure Therapy Photo Lab which is a queer-owned photo lab in Brooklyn – she was able to capture our series that showcased all of the iconic houses on the island. I also asked my coworker Nabil Marebet, a bartender here on the island, if he would be interested in photographing our second editorial that showcased Kenneth Haynes and I at the Belvedere men’s bathhouse in Cherry Grove.
How did you cast for this project?
The casting of this project was all of my coworkers. From our new manager – who truly was a godsend that looked out for us, heard us out when we felt wronged and created a safe space for us – to the bartenders, restaurant staff, gym boy, retail employees, maintenance, baristas and cooks. The casting was easy; it was our tight-knit Fire Island work family.
There’s a ‘Scarface’ theme running throughout the editorial component. What was the thinking behind that?
I wanted this editorial series to showcase the Pines staff as a metaphorical ‘mafia’ of individuals who are bound together, who look out for each other and who run this island – all the while looking really hot. Ultimately, the real victory of our summer was the bond that we created with each other and the memories that we shared – which will last a lifetime.
As the second iteration of the project, how is The Pines Summer of ‘24 different from the 2023 version?
I wanted to elevate this project and really flesh it out! I wanted this next instalment to have more visuals and to capture more of the unseen moments from the point of view of the workers and to elevate the editorial and to create a film to go along with it. I wanted to add to the history of Fire Island photography and do it in a way that has never been seen before.
How does this project address some of the more problematic aspects of Fire Island’s culture?
The majority of the staff is POC and we rarely felt celebrated. This project highlights and celebrates the individuals who create the Fire Island experience that everyone who visits falls in love with. It’s about showcasing these individuals, highlighting our importance in the Fire Island community and emphasising how our experience is truly special and one of a kind.
You’ve mentioned a desire to change the Fire Island photography tradition, but how do you think that on-the-ground activities like Doll Invasion are changing Fire Island for the better?
Doll Invasion, Juneteenth programming and Papi Juice parties are creating history in real time. These are all historical events that are changing Fire Island into a place that is more inclusive of the entire queer community and not only the select white, male demographic that has been the majority for far too long on the island.
We need more of these activities and the way to keep them going is to show up and support them financially and to physically be there! Numbers and dollars are what keep these things afloat and allow these organisers to make space for us out on the island. Come out and support these events!
What would a third instalment of the project look like?
If I’m being honest I’m not sure if there will be one yet. The future is a bit unknown and big positive changes are coming. The previous owner has sold the entire commercial district this year to the owner of The Abbey and MISTR, Tristan Schukraft.
I’m extremely excited about this change – I got to meet him during this past season and hear the ideas he has for the island. More importantly, his team has already shown how much they care about the employees and their living and working conditions on the island. That is already a win for the cast of employees that they will be bringing on for 2025. I’m hoping to go back next year and I think that a possible theme for the next instalment could be inspired by the dawn of a new era – something that is a celebration of what’s new and what’s next!
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
CREDITS CONTINUED
FASHION STYLISTS ENRIQUE ALEJANDRO, KENNETH HAYNES, GAETANO PUGLIESE AND LOGAN INKANISH
PHOTOGRAPHY ASSISTANT PARIS L’HOMMIE
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT ALEX NAGY
BOOK DESIGN KELLY GARRETT
ART WADE SCHAMING
PHOTOGRAPHY LAB EXPOSURE THERAPY PHOTO LAB
LOCATIONS BELVEDERE, 333 OZONE WALK, 490 BAY WALK, 18 WIDGEON WALK, 443 SAIL WALK, 501 BASS WALK, 236 BEACH HILL WALK
SPECIAL THANKS TO KYLE VAN LOO, ALEX SWETERLITSCH, ROY SANFILIPO, MIKE CHRISTATOS, KYLE MEYER, KHALED HABAYEB, GEOFFREY HOEFER, OMOMUKI FOUNDATION FOR LGBTQ+ HEALTH, WONDER AND CRAIG ADAM, GLENN RICE, MANOJ NAIR, DAN SPINELLO, MATT VERGE, KAREN BOSS, RICH HEATON, NICK DITROIA
CAST MISSLEIDY RODRIGUEZ /JIMI URQUIAGA, ALEX NAGY, ALEX SWETERLITSCH, ALISON BUCK, ANDREW MANZO, ANGÉLICA NIÑO, ANTONIO ESTRADA, BENJAMIN LABADIA, BERNARD H BACH, CITRINE CASH COLLINS, COREY BUCKLEY, COLIN O’LEARY, DANIEL K OFORI, DARWIN CHIRINOS, DAVID GACHARNA, DAVINSON PERENA, DJ 2FACE, DENIS CARDOSO DE ALMEIDA, ELIJAH ROSADO, ENRIQUE ALEJANDRO, FELIPE TORO, FERLEY ARGUELLO, GAETANO PUGLIESE, GUSTAVO POLICARIO, HERNÁN MARÍN, JACK SALKOWSKY, JEFF PICA, JAVIER PEDROZA AKA NANA, JESUS ESTRADA, JOJI OTANI-HANSEN, JULIAN SHANE, JUSTIN BARTON, KENNETH HAYNES, KEVIN AGUIRRE QUIRÓZ, KIKI FITZPATRICK, LOGAN INKANISH, MARC CHRISTENSEN, MATEUS FRANCO, MOLLY DALY, MOSES LEONARDO, NABIL MERABET, NICK AMMATURO, NICK DITROIA, NICOLAS MUÑOZ, NOAH DEARING, PARIS L’HOMMIE, RAFAEL MUÑOZ, RICH HEATON, RICH MARGOLIUS, ROB TRUGLIA, SANDRO SAINTS, THADDEUS, TRAVLES WILLIAMS, TYLER GRIFFITH, ULADZISLAU VIISAU AND WADE SCHAMING
