“I have been really interested in drawing dancers,” says artist and curator Aubrey Roemer under the dim light at Pumps, a strip bar on Grand St. “I kinda infiltrated the community, and that was only a step away from curating this show.” The mirrored walls of Pumps, self-proclaimed ‘last titty bar of Brooklyn,’ are covered with art that centers around “the salacious, the sexual and opulent feminity.” All the participating artists were asked to create a site-specific work to fit the nightlife decadence of Pumps.

I request a Heineken from Bianca who will later perform here. She tells me she bartends at Pumps but does a lot of burlesque. Bushwick artists are mingling with the dancers; the bar doesn’t open until 7PM, but the Facebook invitation said 6:30PM, so many art enthusiasts are already here. The owner of Pumps lets another early, artsy group in the bar.