Klaus Nomi Mid Century Triptych

Klaus Nomi Mid Century Triptych is a personal illustration project: a mid century modern take on the retro-futuristic queer icon Klaus Nomi. A staple of New York’s East Village art scene, Nomi awed audiences with his ethereal countertenor voice and his otherworldly appearance. From singing backup for David Bowie on Saturday Night Live to performing operatic arias in Berlin clubs, his career was wild, varied and transformative. Nomi was an early victim of the AIDS crisis, and the loss of his voice and his singular lens on human culture is still felt today.

The triptych spans Nomi’s career. Print 1 is inspired by one of his earliest performances of Purcell’s 17th century aria The Cold Song, from the opera King Arthur. Print 2 is inspired by his evolution into his signature triangular futuristic tuxedo. Print 3 is his final evolution into a Baroque aesthetic, the ruffled collar helping to cover the outbreaks of Kaposi’s sarcoma on his neck, one of the AIDS-related illnesses he developed toward the end of his life.

The triptych ends on Print 3 where it begins in Print 1, with Nomi’s last public performance in December 1982. He took the stage with a full orchestra at Eberhard Schoener’s Classic Rock Night in Munich, close to where he was born, and sang The Cold Song for the final time. The lyrics are haunting in that context, and the performance was excruciating in its beauty and vulnerability.

This is one of my personal illustration pieces, made out of love for a figure whose blend of opera, performance art and queer expression still moves me. You can see more of my illustration and animation work across the site.

If you’re an organisation, label or curator working on queer culture, music history or LGBTQ+ heritage and you’d like to bring a subject to life through illustration or animation, I’d love to hear from you. Get in touch.