We’re thrilled to share that AX Mina, director/producer of Rubbish: The Queer Kingdom of Leilah Babirye, has been selected as a 2024 Trans Possibilities Intensive Fellow at the Sundance Institute.
Mina is a queer nonbinary filmmaker telling stories of healing and liberation through art, with work in places like the Museum of the Moving Image, Brooklyn Museum and the Mozilla Festival. She also produces @fiveandnine_podcast and writes for @hyperallergic .
For the fellowship, she is working on the film, which tells a decade in the life story of @babiryesculptor , a queer artist-activist from Uganda transforming discarded rubbish into visions of liberation. AX and Leilah met over 12 years ago in Kampala, and this feature length film explores the extraordinary artist’s work to reimagine life for the queer diaspora based on compassion, beauty and celebration.
The @sundanceorg program, developed and led by Moi Santos @moi_cis provides guidance from experienced creative advisors and the Sundance Institute’s Equity, Impact, and Belonging Program. We’re honored to be a part of this fellowship alongside five incredible filmmakers and four creative advisors.
Photos from the 2016 NYC Pride and the 2024 Venice Biennale.
Learn more at link in bio and follow @leilahbabiryedocumentary .
@gordonrobichaux@stephenfriedmangallery@galeriemaxhetzler
Check out this beautiful article by Avalon Ashley Bellos at Pen + Brush, featuring a conversation I had with @pyaari_azaadi 👇🏿. Big thanks to Pen and Brush and all who braved the chill. @penandbrushnyc@leilahbabiryedocumentary@babiryesculptor thanks again to my entire team for this amazing Documentary. /new-york/manhattan/the-villager/rubbish-the-queer-kingdom-of-leilah-babirye/
Thank you to everyone who joined us last week for “Radical Queer Art & Liberation” — our very first documentary fundraiser! A huge thank you to @penandbrushnyc for hosting us and to @pyaari_azaadi and @babiryesculptor for the inspiring conversation ✨💜 #leilahbabirye #penandbrushnyc #queerart
Y’all I am so excited to be in conversation with one of my favorite sculptors or all time @babiryesculptor about @leilahbabiryedocumentary this week at @penandbrushnyc please come through Radical Queer Art & Liberation. A Conversation with Pyaari Azaadi & Leilah Babirye and Documentary Fundraiser Join Pyaari Azaadi for an intimate evening with Leilah Babirye celebrating radical queer art and liberation. This is a fundraiser in support of the documentary “Rubbish: The Queer Kingdom of Leilah Babirye.” From the streets of Kampala and Brooklyn to the waterways of Venice and Fire Island, “Rubbish” traces 12 years in the extraordinary life of Leilah Babirye, a queer artist-activist from Uganda who transforms discarded rubbish into powerful visions of freedom. As Leilah seeks political asylum in the U.S. and rises within the international art world, global anti-LGBTQ+ violence escalates—raising urgent questions about art as resistance, trauma, and chosen family. This intimate conversation will be followed by remarks from the film director, AX Mina, and an exclusive look at scenes from the the work in progress documentary. All donations are tax-deductible through the film’s fiscal sponsor, Women Make Movies, and proceeds support both the film Rubbish and Pen + Brush. 📍 Time & Location February 5, 2026 6:00–8:00 PM Pen + Brush Gallery 29 E 22nd St, New York, NY
This week! Please join us Thursday, February 5 for Radical Queer Art & Liberation—an intimate evening with artists Pyaari Azaadi and Leilah Babirye, in support of the documentary Rubbish: The Queer Kingdom of Leilah Babirye.
With so much happening in the world, we hope this can be a space for healing and nourishing community and conversation:
Radical Queer Art & Liberation
📅 February 5, 2026
⏰ 6:00–8:00 PM
📍 Pen + Brush Gallery, 29 E 22nd St, NYC
🍸 Drinks included (21+)
💸 $35–50 suggested donation
We’d love to fill the room — and no need to donate in advance. Just show up, and have a chance to see some incredible art and hear from two incredible artists. RSVP LINK IN BIO 💕
We hope to see you there 💥
Radical Queer Art & Liberation: a Documentary Fundraiser and Conversation with Pyaari Azaadi & Leilah Babirye
Join Pyaari Azaadi for an intimate evening with Leilah Babirye celebrating radical queer art and liberation. This is a fundraiser in support of the documentary “Rubbish: The Queer Kingdom of Leilah Babirye.”
From the streets of Kampala and Brooklyn to the waterways of Venice and Fire Island, “Rubbish” traces 12 years in the extraordinary life of Leilah Babirye, a queer artist-activist from Uganda who transforms discarded rubbish into powerful visions of freedom. As Leilah seeks political asylum in the U.S. and rises within the international art world, global anti-LGBTQ+ violence escalates—raising urgent questions about art as resistance, trauma, and chosen family.
This intimate conversation will be followed by remarks from the film director, AX Mina, and an exclusive look at scenes from the the work in progress documentary.
All donations are tax-deductible through the film’s fiscal sponsor, Women Make Movies, and proceeds support both the film Rubbish and Pen + Brush. Link in bio for details.
📍 Time & Location
February 5, 2026
6:00–8:00 PM
Pen + Brush Gallery
29 E 22nd St, New York, NY
Excited to share some highlights from my summer! Recently, I've been prioritizing rest and self-care, and what better way to do that than going on vacation in Asia with my family straight from home? It's always a treat. I also had the chance to attend some amazing events, including @Jeff Gibson's incredible show at the MET. Huge congrats! @margaretnagawa , thanks for putting on an amazing show; it was great seeing my work included in the Chazen collection at the @chazenartuw . And @gordonrobichaux , your two-person show was fantastic! I also loved running into friends, seeing some art, enjoying good food, and experiencing my first Ugandan community annual celebration with @unaaorg - it was truly beautiful. And let's not forget the parties and fun we had! I even took a painting class with @anca_danila and can't wait to get back into painting and drawing. We'll be back in New York soon, @patricia_cronin . Had a blast in Ireland reconnecting and celebrating the 10-year anniversary of equal marriage at the @immaireland conference. Hearing you speak at the marriage equality monument was inspiring, @babiryesculptor #babiryeleilah @leilahbabiryedocumentary
Still basking in the glory of last weekend's celebration at Fire Island, where @fireislandresidency invited me back to celebrate my 10-year milestone since arriving. It was fantastic to see Fire Island marking its 100-year anniversary. Bringing some of my Ugandan LGBTQ activists friends along was a highlight, and everyone felt right at home. Fire Island holds a special place in my heart. Massive thanks to the team that made it happen, especially after our high-energy Ugandan dance performance at the Ice Palace. @fireislandresidency@leilahbabiryedocumentary@babiryesculptor .
We had a great weekend in Fire Island with the Rubbish team and @babiryesculptor ’s community, celebrating 10 years since her arrival on the island for @fireislandresidency . Music, dancing, tears and hugs all around! Thank you @canva@tribeca for your support.
Join us for the final public program of the summer season!
Visiting Artist Talk with
LEILAH BABIRYE
Tuesday, August 5, 2025
6:30 PM
Cherry Grove Community House & Theater
Free | All welcome
Leilah Babirye was born in 1985 in Kampala, Uganda. She lives and works in Brooklyn, NY. She studied art at Makerere University in Kampala (2007–2010) and fled her native Uganda to New York in 2015 to participate in the Fire Island Artist Residency after being publicly outed in a local newspaper. In 2018, the artist was granted asylum in the US and presented her first solo show at Gordon Robichaux, NY. In 2022, she created a site-responsive work for ‘Black Atlantic’, a Public Art Fund project at Brooklyn Bridge Park and presented five major sculptures at the 2024 Venice Biennale. Leilah Babirye’s multidisciplinary practice transforms everyday materials into objects that address issues surrounding identity, sexuality and human rights. She was recently listed as one of 50 of America’s top creatives by Wallpaper*.
Photo of artist: AX Mina
Work of art: Leilah Babirye, “Namasole Wannyana, Mother of King Kimera from the Kuchu Royal Family of Buganda.” Courtesy Gordon Robichaux, Stephen Friedman Gallery, and Galerie Max Hetzler.
