PAUL CADMUS (1904-1999)

Stewart’s Cafeteria was a popular space for the LGBTQIA+ community in Greenwich Village in the 1930s. Paul Cadmus’s print is based on his 1934 painting, now at the Museum of Modern Art. The large windows of the first floor establishment directly in front of the Christopher Street subway stop at the intersection of West 4th Street and Seventh Avenue, provided the perfect opportunity for patrons to see and be seen, and moreover, be recognized by other queer individuals.

In 1935 the manager of Stewart’s was convicted of operating a disorderly space. The complaint specifically called out “certain persons of the homosexual type and certain persons of the Lesbian type, to remain therein and engage in acts of sapphism and divers [sic] other lewd, obscene, indecent and disgusting acts”.
Cadmus depicted his figures in a style that has been compared to the 18th century artist William Hogarth, which is especially evident in his prints. However, unlike Hogarth, Cadmus is not attempting to pass moral judgment on his subjects, as he himself was an openly gay artist who embraced queerness in his art.