Mistress Velvet & Black Domme Traditions
Chicago, Illinois
COMING SOON — A short documentary on the history of Black Dommes in America with a focus on Mistress Velvet. The documentary will explore the cultural and political contributions of Black Dommes that have impacted sex work industry and the mainstream cultural conversations overall.
SHOWN HERE — Highlights from a memorial celebrating the life of Mistress Velvet (1988 – 2021) with members of the Chicago community.
Jazz Williams
Videographer
Jazz Williams is a non-binary queer video editor from the south side of Chicago. Early on they knew they wanted to be involved in the film and television industry in some way. They began their career in youth media as the engineer, producer and editor for the HoopsHIGH program on the west side of Chicago. In 2016, they relocated with their son and wife to Madison, WI where they had the opportunity to be an engineer and editor at PBS. Currently, they reside in Chicago with their family and work as a freelance video editor with a focus on narrative work. @ItsJazzaeJ on Twitter and sillynugget.com.
Artist Marcia X
Editor
Artist Marcia X is a Puerto Rican multidisciplinary artist and writer. Their practice includes film, performance and photography. Their currently completing their doctoral work in Afro-Indigenous phenomenology and artistic research. Find them @artistmarciax on social media, and their latest work can been viewed and purchased on their website artistmarciax.com.
Cruel Valentine
Known as “Chicago’s Own Community Chest”, Cruel Valentine is an award-winning, international burlesque entertainer, adult film performer, dominatrix, actor, dancer, writer, and artist. Valentine began performing the art of burlesque in 2007. Since then, they have spent the past several years performing their way across the nation and abroad, racking up multiple awards and honors. Valentine is an independent performer, producer, and teacher of burlesque, as well as an adult performer with The Lust Garden, featured on Pink Label.
Baby
Baby (they/them) is an erotic food laborer and cultural worker based in Chicago. Articulating nourishment in familiar and found forms realizes and expands upon the relationship between their values and artistic practice. Guided by participatory research principles alongside compassionate and critical analysis of Black feminist literature, they develop performance art that explores practicing pleasure as an everyday healing modality. You can find them waxing poetic about food and fornication across all platforms at @lilfoodbaby and @slutsupper.
Rebelle Cunt
Rebelle Cunt, founder and director of the Heaux History Project, is an indie scholar, researcher, writer, and organizer from Chicago. They are a current full service sex worker and cam model and are a former exotic dancer. Their work centers Black erotic labor and collecting the narratives/stories of community members. Their most recent narrative essay can be found in We Too: Essays on Sex Work & Survival. You can find, follow, and tip them on their Patreon.