Cruise Verhalen is a growing archive of audio fragments that describe cruising experiences in and around Amsterdam from the 18th century to today. It combines first hand experiences from interviews and adaptations of court transcripts from convicted homosexuals from the archive of the Amsterdam Museum. Each fragment contains a unique story: from brief sexual encounters to lifelong friendships. The stories touch on overarching themes of connection, intimacy, sexual freedom and friendship. For a moment listeners are included in a parallel world in public space.

By collecting, documenting and researching stories of cruising, the project tracks the fluid (re)shaping of public space and through the recording of oral history documents cruising culture in the Netherlands. The archive shows stories of intimacy in uncommon places and locations: within city centers, outer laying parks and nature reserves or parking areas. The exact locations are not revealed, but most of the locations no longer exist due to municipal regulations,  urban development and digital dating platforms. They vanish from one day to the next only to be remembered in the memories of experiences.

By creating this archive, Barnaby attempts to save the physical interactions and experiences from fading out of existence in time and digital evolution. So younger generations of queer pleasure seekers don’t forget other ways of navigating the normative structure.

Articles

Kunstenaar Barnaby Savage – zelf een cruiser – duikt in de geschiedenis van de buitenseks: ‘Ik ervaar daar een enorme vrijheid’

Wat kunnen we leren van de ‘vieze mannen in de bosjes’? Met die vraag dook kunstenaar en theatermaker Barnaby Savage in de geschiedenis van het cruisen in Amsterdam. Ooit moet het een grote tentoonstelling worden, nu is er alvast een middag met Cruise verhalen.

Lorianne van Gelder, Het Parool 2023

The work includes:

• Collection of audio files containing first hand cruising experiences.
• A map illustrated by Stijn Pommee and portrays cruising areas that either no longer exist or are permitted by the municipality. The objective is to archive these spaces for future (queer) generations.
• Collage by Carlos Marlo.

The interviews used in Cruise Verhalen were conducted from a collection of residencies: the Volkshotel during Queer & Pride Amsterdam in 2023 and organized in collaboration with Roisin Douglas & at the Verkade Fabriek ‘s-Hertogenbosch in 2024 programmed at Queer Arts Festival.

This project is supported by Club Church, Amsterdam Museum, Buro Curious, Bob Angelo Fonds, COC Noord Oost Brabant, Gemeente ‘s-Hertogenbosch en Omroep Zwart.

CREDITS

concept Barnaby Savage

project-coordinator Roisin Douglas

illustrator Stijn Pommee

sound edit Djaena Bernardus

special thanks to Richard John Jones, Mattias Duyves, Gert Hekma, Stichting Platform Keelbos