Brendan Fernandes’s rug design, created in collaboration with artist Nontsikelelo Mutiti and titled In Trust, explores the social and political implications for people living with HIV/AIDS, as well as the broader threats to the freedoms of queer people in the current US political climate. The rug’s pattern is based on traditional West African batik, with roses defining the contours of a fallen human body—an emblem of both oppression and resistance. The geometric latticework is formed by PreP pills—medication used to help prevent the spread of HIV—calling attention to the drug’s influence on queer behaviors and perceptions, including the alternating views of queer sex as a danger and a sanctuary. The ritual of taking the pills becomes a form of “daily prayer” that links those at risk of HIV infection to other groups of outsiders, such as immigrants and Muslims, who are depicted by the Trump Administration as threats to its citizenry and the American way of life.
