Closing down the David Bowie exhibit over the Jan. 3 weekend, singer Annie Clark—also known as St. Vincent—spoke to a packed Ediis Neeson Theater downstairs inside the Museum of Contemporary Art ( MCA ), selling out tickets for her talkback within three hours of first announcement. Some patrons waited in lines down the block during the day for one of the last chances to tour the retrospective of one of the most influential performers of all time.
Pitchfork editor Jessica Hopper interviewed Clark, kicking off the Q&A with a fashion question. Clark stated she performed at a queer bar in Dallas early in her career with leather pants—and had a surprise camel toe. Not taking herself too seriously set the tone for an evening that could have turned pretentious.
There was no singing or renditions of David Bowie songs but influences were talked about from punk-girl groups like Bikini Kill, Sleater-Kinney and Cibo Matto, blending into showtunes and her affection for them.
She discussed the '50s "queerdom" of Bowie's work and how decadent the time was. Madonna was given a shout-out for an '80s influence and Beyonce was thrown under the feminist bus, not exactly understanding her sign at the VMAs this past year.
The name game was explainedm as there were too many Annie Clarks in the world in the beginning so she named herself and band St. Vincent, after a male saint. It has been recorded that the moniker comes from a Nick Cave song and in reference to her great-grandmother's middle name, but she didn't get into that.
The Grammy nominee talked about having worked with notable people such as the prolific David Byrne and quirky The Polyphonic Spree.
Windy City Times asked her about LGBT influences in her life so she brought up lesbian bands such as Tracy + the Plastics and stated the New York gay scene was her favorite place to party, citing some of her nights out with drag queen Justin Vivian Bond as being particularly memorable. "Justin's performances were very powerful for me," she said.
Her latest album has a song called "Prince Johnny" on it that's all about the downtown New York queer community, and she wanted to make that clear to the crowd.
Her recent tour contained costumes inspired by Daryl Hannah in Blade Runner, which led into her favorite costume from the exhibit—Bowie's iconic Ziggy Stardust creation. Interestingly enough, Hannah herself visited the museum during the course of the record-setting run of "David Bowie Is."
The self-described "sexually fluid" artist seemed open and honest while speaking to the crowd. For someone known for being so private, she talked about herself and Bowie that night while connecting him to her past quite candidly.
For upcoming events and exhibitions at the MCA, visit mcachicago.org .
