Collage

This collage was created by Chrissy Witoko (1944-2002, Ngāti Kahungunu), who owned the Evergreen Coffee Lounge on Vivian Street, Wellington. It was one of many panels made by Chrissy which contain cut out images of people, news clippings, business cards and invitations. They provide a glimpse into the activities of LGBTQI+ communities and allies in Wellington from the early 1970s to 2002.

Chrissy, who described herself as a 'Queen', came to be an admired and charismatic personality. She also had close associations with Carmen Rupe.

Chrissy arrived in Wellington as a teenager in the late 1950s, and later worked at clubs and cafes such as the Mexicali, Powder Poofs and the Sorrento. It was the coffee bar era where the names of the establishments - the Sweetheart, Casa Fontana and the Egyptian Tearooms - were as exotic as those adopted by the queens.

Chrissy was manager of a number of inner-city clubs including the famed Sunset and later the Nutcracker. She then ran her own establishment, the Evergreen Coffee Lounge, from 1984 to about 1998. The Evergreen, at one time an informal gay and lesbian drop-in centre, was famous for its late night toasted sandwiches and the warmth and dry wit of its hostess.