Sometime last year, I received a message from a person who purchased one of my pieces, which depicted Apollo as a trans person. They said that they were very moved by it, as they had never before seen a trans person depicted so gloriously, and that seeing it at a key time in their own process of self-discovery, helped them accept themselves. Honestly, that was one of the most meaningful things I have ever heard about my work, and although I sometimes struggle to validate my own contribution to our community it helped me see that as a trans artist, I have the ability to create a positive narrative for myself and people like me.

This year, as we face the rapid rise of fascist persecution, it feels even more critical to claim our space. When I was asked to participate in this show, it was suggested that I “go big” and as a person who hates to leave a challenge unmet, I set out to do just that – a larger than life installation of several trans gods, beautiful and glorious. 

The journey to bring this concept to completion has been epic. Not having often worked at this scale, I had to pave all new processes for these and challenged myself at every turn, from building the panels themselves to working in the chosen medium – acrylic – which I have not often used. My inspiration for these is rooted in my interest in classical art, with a nod towards the art nouveau aesthetic, which are common themes in my work. Each deity is pictured with plants and/or animals associated with their worship, and are arranged to create a colonnade in the negative space around them. I could not be more pleased with the end result, and I hope you – the viewer – agree.