FriGay the Furbteenth reception

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Drew Thelke

A Furby-themed artwork.

media release: FriGAY the Furbteenth, an underground queer-themed art event and immersive community experience, returns for its third year on Friday, June 13, 2025, from 6–10 PM at Common Wealth Gallery (100 S. Baldwin St, Madison, WI, 53703). The show is a Pride Month celebration of Furby-based art, unabashed self-expression, and the transcendental fervor of fandoms gone awry. The gallery will be open after the reception June 14–19 | 10 AM – 7 PM.

Founded by Madison-based artists Hilary Falk and Hailey McLaughlin, FriGAY the Furbteenth transforms the iconic and uncanny Furby toy into a sacred object of queer storytelling, horror, humor, and glitter-fueled creativity. The exhibition features work from over 40 LGBTQ+ and ally artists from Wisconsin and beyond, creating a space where identity, childhood memory, and absurdism collide. Not only will the gallery art be available to haunt its buyers’ homes; there will also be 4 incredible established local Furby artists with wearable wonders, reimagined Furb toys, zines, and prints for the June 13 opening night’s newly indoctrinated.

After attracting over 400 attendees to Hilary Falk’s house during its debut year, the event found a new home in the Common Wealth Gallery, located inside the Madison Enterprise Center.

This marks its second year in the gallery- a centrally-located and accessible space that is sober-friendly, neurodivergent-positive, and open to all, including those who have never attended an art event before but feel called by the strange spiritual hum of the Furb. This year’s exhibition includes a blend of heartfelt, hilarious, and occasionally degenerate art — some works may include adult themes, and parental/guardian discretion is advised for younger attendees. Friday the Furbteenth has always been a pay-what-you-can show, with no percentage taken from artist sales and low vendor fees to encourage a joyful and low-stakes art celebration for all.

Live performances on the Opening Gallery night will include a hoop dancer, live poetry recitations, acrobatic feats, and DRAG. Many attendees will bring their very own modified or Oddbody Furb creations, with wild and fabulous ensembles to match their tiny overlords.

Attendee participation and joy is part of what makes Friday the Furbteenth an enduring and community-centered art event.

“This is not just an art show. It’s a cult. A movement. A warm, screaming hug from your childhood,” say the High Priestesses of the Furby, Hailey and Hilary (in unison).

As part of their growing arts leadership, McLaughlin and Falk were awarded second place in the 16th Annual University of Wisconsin–Madison Arts Business Competition, in partnership with the Bolz Center for Arts Administration, with a grant written by Sydney Prather. Past winners of the competition include Ollie DePietro, co-founder of The Big Gay Market, which takes place during the same weekend — proving that the stars have aligned for a rainbow-hued takeover of Madison’s creative scene.