The Last Lesbian Bar in San Francisco

The Lexington Club, preserved in photos.

Photo by Ace Morgan

The Lexington Club was the iconic dyke/lesbian/queer bar that operated for 18 years in San Francisco's Mission District until the last drink was served in 2015. "The Lex" was an internationally known beacon to lesbians, dykes, bois, queers, and their friends who came to the "gay mecca" of San Francisco. For many, it was more than a bar — it was a living room, a cultural center, a safe space. With its closure, the queer community is left to both remember it and reimagine new spaces in which they can come together and experience one another.

This exhibit of images and ephemera, curated by Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith of the Lexington Club Archival Project, shows the vibrancy of the community that formed around the Lex. The bar's legacy was also documented in a short film, Never a Cover, which screened at the 2015 SF International Film Festival.

Amidst changing patrons and aesthetics, the space transformed and was transformed by its community. The Bay Area is not the same without it.

Artwork by Elizabeth Beier

Photo: Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

Photo by Ace Morgan

Ace Morgan is a professional photographer, personal trainer, and papa. Ace been taking photos and capturing his world around him since high school, age 16. Ace describes himself as a documentary-style photographer, seizing moments, from punk bands to serial killers, family and friends, queer activism, police brutality, community from Detroit to the Bay Area, and his daughter. Ace's work has appeared in a variety of zines and compilation books such as Maximum Rock and Rock. His work has been shown in galleries including Strange Loop Gallery (New York City), the Luggage Store Gallery (San Francisco), Alley Cat Bookstore (S.F.), the Lexington Club (S.F.), Femina Potens Art Gallery (S.F.), and 404 Willis (Detroit). Ace Morgan Photography's work can be viewed at www.acemorganphoto.com

Photo: Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

Photo: Molly DeCoudreaux

Molly DeCoudreaux is a photographer from Oakland, living in San Francisco, who works primarily in the nexus of food, portraiture, and travel photography. Molly's favorite subjects are people who wholeheartedly live their own truth, whether it be in the work they do or their expression of self. In working with the Lexington Club for many years, creating party fliers and posters, Molly exposed the walls of her studio to every blessed, babely, and hilarious thing under the sun. MollyDeCoudreaux.com

Photo by Ace Morgan

Photo: Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

Photo by Cody T. Williams

"I remember when I first fell in love with the light and magic decanting from 3464 19th St. It is with gratitude and admiration that there was a space for my awkward lens to see and share in such a beautiful community unto its own. It lives on in our stories and secret smiles." — Cody T. Williams

Photo: Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

Artwork by Elizabeth Beier

Photo: Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

Photo by Cody T. Williams

On display, the photos by Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

Photo: Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

In the exhibit

Photo: Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith photo by Cody T. Williams

Photo: Lauren Tabak and Susie Smith

Photo by Rebeka Rodriquez

Rebeka Rodriguez is an artist, curator, and cultural producer. She designs and implements creative programming that is responsive to the social, historical, and geographic contexts in which she works. She founded and produced BYOQ, a daytime festival featuring queer Bay Area music, art, fashion and performance. She is the director for AIR-SF, a nonprofit project committed to producing relevant public art projects and expanding civic participation. Currently, you can find her developing public art and education projects as the civic engagement manager at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Her photography practice seeks to reveal unconscious markers of identity and desire; this work includes portraiture, journalism, and collaborations with other artists.

The Last Lesbian Bar in San Francisco