Trevor Shimizu

Writes Shimizu: "I used to work as a photographer hired by a website to promote NYC and the Hamptons nightlife. The promoters would hire the people I worked for to send me over to their party to take photos of the people there. I would go to 2-3 different clubs a night, 4 nights a week. The range in partygoers was pretty big. During my final few months with the company, I was mainly assigned to an after-party spot on Broadway called Pangaea. At Pangaea, I photographed Ice T, Sting, among others. The job, for the most part, was really fun. I drank so much Red Bull vodka."

Studying to be an actor, I read a tragic monologue written by my friend, Nathan Frank (also the camera operator). I started making the video right before Y2K. It was a very uncertain time. This is around the time I painted my first intentionally performative self portrait, aka Me and Molly Ringwald.

I lived off Lombard Street in a private terrace apartment overlooking the Golden Gate Bridge for free. I had free rent because I was the caretaker for the owner of the building who lived upstairs. Her name was Stephanie Bauer. She was about 80 years old. It was a very ideal situation, except for the fact that my neighbor was a handsome French man who had loud sex most nights.