COLOR EXPLOSION | Walking into Daniel Padilla’s Oak Cliff gallery is akin to Dorothy stepping into Oz. (Rich Lopez/Dallas Voice)
Padilla made it to Dallas the long way from McAllen, Texas. Venturing into the arts community of Houston with his brother, Padilla took the plunge and played the New York art scene and then finally returned to Texas, landing in Dallas. With vibrant works that run from abstracts to figurative and portraiture, the gay artist doesn’t shy away from letting his art speak to the community with past exhibits including “Experimenting with Bears,” a semi-erotic collection of hirsute subject (not the animal); a DIFFA jean jacket collection; and a recent selection of works in “Love is in the Air,” inspired by the art of burlesque and the recent Jean Paul Gaultier exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art. His Oak Cliff gallery on Davis is almost easy to miss, but when you walk in, the walls become a colored explosion like when Dorothy opened her sepia door into the land of Oz.
— Rich Lopez
BEST LOCAL ARTIST
Daniel Padilla
Padilla Gallery
829 W. Davis St.
713-392-7014
Call for appointment
DanielPadilla.com
BEST LOCAL MEDIA
PERSONALITY
Ron Corning
News 8 Daybreak
BEST LOCAL PHOTOGRAPHER
Eric Dickson
SCRUM-TIOUS | Members of the Dallas Diablos know how to take a shot — on the field and in the bar. (Arnold Wayne Jones/Dallas Voice)
Dallas has a vibrant gay sports scene, with large organizations serving softball, volleyball, tennis, bowling, even golf and swimming. So how did the lil ol’ Dallas Diablos, the sole gay rugby team in the area, figure as a reader favorite? It’s probably the same scrappy attitude that has made rugby a growing sport worldwide, from the heroics of United 93’s gay rugby star Mark Bingham 10 years ago to the forceful inclusionary message of English heartthrob Ben Cohen to the Diablos’ own successful HellFest tournament each fall. Then, again, just look at the team: Hunky, scarred, tough but handsome men who know how to take a shot — both on the field and in the bar. Ruggedness is sexy.
— Arnold Wayne Jones
BEST LOCAL LGBT SPORTS TEAM
Dallas Diablos Rugby Football Club
BEST LOCAL LGBT ORGANIZATION
Resource Center Dallas
2701 Reagan St.
214-528-0144
RCDallas.org
BEST LOCAL LGBT ROLE MODEL
Cece Cox
BEST LOCAL LGBT FUNDRAISER
The Black Tie Dinner
4015 Lemmon Ave, Suite 4001, PMB 321
Next Black Tie Dinner: Nov. 3, 2012
972-865-2239
BlackTie.org
BEST LOCAL LGBT SPORTS
ORGANIZATION
Pegasus Slowpitch Softball League
BEST LOCAL LGBT ATHLETE
Greg Smith
See appreciation
HOTTEST LOCAL PRO ATHLETE
Miles Austin, Dallas Cowboys
BEST LOCAL PRO SPORTS TEAM
Dallas Mavericks
GAYEST APARTMENT COMPLEX
the ilume
4123 Cedar Springs Road
214-520-0588
ilume.com
BEST PLACE OF WORSHIP
Cathedral of Hope
5910 Cedar Springs Road
Sunday services at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m.
214-351-1901
CathedralofHope.com
BEST PEOPLE-WATCHING SPOT
Hunky’s Old Fashioned Hamburgers patio
3930 Cedar Springs Road
214-522-1212
Hunkys.com
BEST LOCAL MUSEUM
The Dallas Museum of Art
1717 Harwood St.
Open Tuesdays–Sundays
DallasMuseumofArt.org
BEST SMARTPHONE SOCIAL APP
Facebook Mobile
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition March 16, 2012.
