item details
NameQueens of the Pacific poster
ProductionNew Zealand AIDS Foundation; publisher; late 1990s; New Zealand
Arjan Hoeflak; designer; late 1990s; New Zealand
Mariano Vivanco; photographer; late 1990s; New Zealand
Arjan Hoeflak; designer; late 1990s; New Zealand
Mariano Vivanco; photographer; late 1990s; New Zealand
Classificationposters
Materialspaper, ink
Techniquesprinting
DimensionsOverall: 422mm (width), 596mm (height)
Registration NumberGH025370
Credit lineGift of New Zealand AIDS Foundation, 2019
Overview
This poster advertises a safer sex message aimed at Pacific gender minority communities, and is in the voice of fa’afāfine, 'akava'ine and fakaleiti from New Zealand Samoan, Cook Island and Tongan communities respectively. It draws upon the strength of a particular gendered identity where Pacific Island men behave in a range of feminine-gendered ways.
Between 1995 and 2005 deaths from AIDS peaked in New Zealand and then fell sharply as new HIV treatments became available. The New Zealand AIDS Foundation continued to run education campaigns such as this poster, targeting vulnerable and high risk groups of people.