Back for its eighth market, The Big Gay Holiday Market is set for this weekend starting Friday, Dec. 20 through Saturday, Dec. 21, at the Alliant Energy Center, and will feature over 80 artists and makers. Friday’s ticketed festivities will take place from 6-10 p.m. and will be 18+ only. The first 500 customers at Friday’s market will receive gift bags.
Saturday’s market will run all day from 9-5 p.m. and welcomes guests of all ages, with masking required from 9-11 a.m. No tickets are required.
Hosting an event during the holidays is an intentional move for The Big Gay Market’s organizers, who know that the season can be challenging for members of the LGBTQIA+ community.
“TBGM is so important during the holidays for people that maybe aren’t offered traditional holiday experiences,” TBGM organizer Ollie DiPietro said. “Some of us don’t visit our families [during] the holidays and it can be really isolating and upsetting. The market provides a space for people to get together and celebrate the holidays with others.”
To bolster this sense of community, the market will host its first-ever friend speed dating event on Friday. While the idea to host it was DiPietro’s, TBGM co-organizer Ashley Shaw Adams noted that the activity builds off what has already been happening organically at markets.
“Our awesome patrons [consistently say] to us or post comments on our social media about how they love going to The Big Gay Market and making new friends,” she explained. “And for some of them, that’s even why they [began attending] in the first place.”
This speed dating event provides a “safe queer space” that doesn’t heavily feature alcohol and loud music for people to form friendships.
“[It] can be both a place for you to go with your found family or with your inclusive blood family, as well as a place to expand upon that said found family,” Shaw Adams said.
A drag show (masked required) featuring Dominique DeGrant, Malaiya Marvel, Jonny B., Kaprina Mirage, and Kowphushia and hosted by Cynthia Mooseknuckle will also take place on Friday night from 7-9 p.m. There will be 200 tickets available for purchase in advance.
In addition to the vendors present, Saturday’s events continue to build off the kinds of offerings that have been most successful at past events.
“We made this market for the queer community, by the queer community, and we want to continue honoring the queer community and what they want,” Shaw Adams said.
For example, TBGM will be bringing back its clothing swap from the summer. Hosted in collaboration with the Trans Resistance Action Committee (TRAC Madison), this “wildly popular” event was a repeated request from patrons who’ve frequented past markets.
“I’ve literally lost count of the number of people who cold messaged us saying, ‘I love the clothing swap. Can you make that happen again?’” Shaw Adams recalled.
DiPietro says that the clothing swap is also a way for attendees to engage with the market without necessarily having to spend a lot of money.
“We understand that everyone is at different financial places in their lives and we don’t want to exclude people from taking home something special,” they explained. “In addition, we love our clothing swaps because it is a gender-less space for people to engage with clothing.”
Educational elements continue to be a mainstay for TBGM, with close attention to topics and issues unique to the queer community.
Trans Medical Mutual Aid’s Trans Surgery 101 Workshop and Talk Back that will give attendees the opportunity to hear first hand accounts of what it’s like to undergo various forms of gender affirming surgeries. Developed in collaboration between TRAC’s Logan Bitz and a licensed therapist who specializes in letters of readiness, the presentation will also walk through more of the logistical aspects of seeking gender affirming care.
“This [kind of] information is not widely available and can be very hard to find,” DiPietro said. “Trans surgery information can be secretive or deceptive, which makes it hard to find out what’s true or not.”
“Logan has done a lot of hard work and research to find authentic and helpful information about trans surgeries for people that are in need of them,” they added.
Beyond these exciting customer-influenced offerings, Shaw Adams and DiPietro emphasize that at the heart of The Big Gay Market remains celebrating the vendors and patrons that come near and far to make TBGM the success that it is.
“At its core, the market is serving our community, that we attract our patrons and serve our vendors by having them shop small and put their money back into the queer community,” Shaw Adams said.
In its eighth iteration, TBGM vendor applications have steadied to around 100-150 vendor applicants per market. And, while Shaw Adams notes that there’s been an increase of out of state applicants, she says that TBGM will primarily continue to serve local creators.
“A large part of why we do this is to make sure that we are serving our community, and part of that community is our Wisconsin community,” she said. “I can confidently say that the majority of our vendors will always be from Wisconsin and the Wisconsin community.”
To make sure that vendors have the best experience possible, the organizers strive to ensure that vendor selection is equitable, both in terms of who has participated in the past and what mix of vendors would make the best sales.
“We try to be as honest as we possibly can be with our communication with them, saying, ‘You have not been admitted because you participated in our most recent market, and we want to give somebody new a chance,’” Shaw Adams said. “We also don’t want to over saturate sales.”
Overall, DiPietro’s hopes for this market remain the same as TBGM’s previous gatherings.
“My hope for the market is that it continues to show people that we’re not alone, and we’re stronger together,” they said. “We need mutual aid and support networks now, and the market is a way to get it. I hope people keep attending and engaging with our beautiful and strong queer community.”
The Big Gay Market is still accepting volunteers for a wide range of day-of tasks. The volunteer form can be found here.
The Alliant Energy Center is fully ADA accessible and will have gender-neutral restrooms available.
Learn more about three BIPOC vendors who will be selling their work at this weekend’s market below:
Brush Box Immersive Arts creates accessible art kits that encourage regulation and artistic expression. This will be owner Amber Thomas’ second time vending at TBGM, which she always enjoys because “everyone, from the shoppers to creators, bring such a positive and uplifting environment.”
Brush Box’s offerings this weekend will include their bestselling Peppermint Marshmallow Fluff Slime Kit. Thomas noted that vending at events like TBGM “gives younger creators of color someone to look up to or be inspired by.”
Wildflowers by Giselle creates “unapologetically feminine, LGBTQ, and Latinx” prints, cards, floral accessories, ornaments, piñatas, and more. Kimberly Giselle Hernandez just started vending their work this past year, and is thrilled to be a first-time vendor with TBGM.
“My favorite place to vend is at Pride festivals, so I’m happy there are some queer holiday events in Madison,” they said. “The LGBTQ+ community is not a monolith, and LGBTQ+ makers of color need the support of our community because racism and homophobia impact us simultaneously.”
Hernandez is especially looking forward to seeing buyers’ responses to a new hand-painted ornament collection featuring Patagonian birds at this market. “I love seeing people’s confidence soar when they try things on,” they added regarding their floral accessories. “I’m [also] excited to meet new people and get to see other artists and makers’ work.”
Tori’s Trinkets sells handmade hypoallergenic modern statement jewelry, accessories, and other trinkets that work to “heal your inner child, one silly pair of earrings at a time.” Owner Tori Morgan Nagel has been vending at markets for four years, and loves the TBGM community because of how “the LGBTQIA+ community shows up and shows out for each other and shops small.”
Nagel attributes her ability to pursue her artistic passion and entrepreneurship to her family. “My mom immigrated here as a child because my grandparents wanted their descendants to live the American Dream,” she said. “My mom opened up a bead shop on the Main Street of my hometown and I grew up watching her teach classes, get integrated into the local community, and share her love of jewelry making with the world. Without witnessing their bravery, I don’t know if I would have ever had the courage to share my art and take the leap into small business ownership.”
Nagel is especially excited to “be in community and support [other vendors] with our holiday shopping before we all take a much-needed break.”
