The Bunker SLO’s second annual Pride gallery explores self-identity and representation
What used to be an old warehouse is now home to one of San Luis Obispo’s art galleries and coffee houses, The Bunker SLO, birthed out of Missy Reitner-Camerons’ love for art and community. Gala Pride and Diversity Center’s Laura Albers and Reitner-Cameron have collaborated to hold a gallery for the duration of Pride Month, themed “Who Am I?”
June 7 was the grand opening for the “Who Am I?” art gallery during Art After Dark hours. The gallery consists of 30 art pieces from queer artists in different mediums, including photographs, mixed media, paintings and more.
“I love giving artists that are not in the majority opportunities to submit. So having these open calls to queer artists gives them a space that is theirs,” Reitner-Cameron said.
Reitner-Cameron originally rented out The Bunker warehouse around early 2014 and eventually bought the place, which she converted into individual studios for artists to have access to day and night. Reitner-Cameron began remodeling the place in 2019, and with a hold from the pandemic in 2020, The Bunker SLO finally opened up its new doors to the public in March 2023.
“It’s important to me to see our neighborhood and city grow,” Reitner-Cameron said. “I think Pride Month is an important month to participate in, especially in a space like ours that is very open. I think it’s important to show that we are an inclusive space.”
It’s now a multi-use space — a Nautical Bean coffee house, art gallery and host of live music, dance, poetry and all kinds of arts. The Bunker SLO allows the public to enjoy a hot cup of joe as they walk around the gallery and observe the art displayed on the walls.
“Remodeling allowed for more people to enjoy the space,” Reitner-Cameron said. “I thought to remodel it to create a safe space for people to enjoy.”
Last year, The Bunker exhibited its first-ever Pride Month gallery titled, “We Are Family,” which was spearheaded by the Gala Pride and Diversity Center. This exhibition consisted of a photographic series that portrayed eight families on the Central Coast who represented the LGBTQ+ community.
Black and white photographer Renonda Campbell, showcased families photographed in a studio setting, as she drew back into her memory to the Sears portrait studios.
“I vividly remember the discomfort of being rigidly posed alongside [my] own family in those photographs,” she said on The Bunker’s website.
Instead of photographing families by genetics, she photographed families who offer unconditional love, acceptance and support for one another.
In contrast, photographer Summer Truschke displayed colored photographs capturing movement and families in action. Truschke said she “wanted to capture beyond just the image of a family, but a moment within that family, filled with personality and authenticity,” on The Bunker’s site.
To do so, she visited and spent time with LGBTQ+ families and simply listened to their stories while capturing natural moments as their stories unfolded.
“I liked the juxtaposition of being ‘what is family?’ It’s really important, you know? Because a lot of people do not recognize non-traditional families,” Reitner-Cameron said. “We wanted to show that, yeah, these are families, they all look different, every family looks different.”
The Bunker SLO is located at 810 Orcutt Road in San Luis Obispo. More information on The Bunker and the “Who Am I?” art gallery can be found here.
