Holly Falconer for Louche Magazine
Cool Dad's Jacket
Leather, acrylic paint.
2018
Exhibited at Rebel Dykes Art and Archive Show, Space Station 65, London
Courtesy of Louche magazine, Photograph by Holly Falconer. Exhibited at Rebel Dykes Art and Archive Show, Space Station 65, London Photo by Dominic Harris.
Cool Dad is a leather daddy alter ego created by Katayoun Jalilipour. Cool Dad started out as a 20 minute long performance piece, performed at various queer night life performance events across the UK and internationally, and festivals. Cool Dad was created to fulfil a need for visibility in hyper masculine and white queer spaces that often erase nonconforming forms of masculinity. Specifically in gay kink and BDSM spaces, often the most exclusionary spaces in terms of racial and trans exclusion. This was following various reports of femmephobia and transphobia across the UK gay saunas and kink spaces in 2018.
Cool Dad now lives on as a concept, an experience, and an art object. Cool Dad's jacket, was exhibited as an artifact at The Rebel Dykes Art and Archive Show (2021), alongside the Black Widow's leather jackets (80's Lesbian Biker Gang).
Cool Dad's bio: Cool Dad is the best leather daddy in town, but isn't allowed into gay spaces because of his boobs. He expresses his dissatisfaction and frustration with transphobia through comedy, strip tease and piss drinking.
