Meet the Proud To Be Challenge Winners
In a time when there are literally hundreds of bills working their way through local and national institutions trying to pressure 2SLGBTQIA+ youth to stay in the closet, this is an important time to rally our community around the support for young queer and questioning folks. Queer youth deserve to know that they are not alone, that their voices matter, and that the world is better because they bring their unique perspectives and talents to it.
To promote this, earlier this year, Give Us the Floor put out a call to youth artists ages 13-24 across the US to submit creative works that answer one very important question:
What makes you “Proud To Be” you?
We called it the #ProudToBeChallenge, and we honored to receive several works from talented young creators across different mediums.
After the submission period closed, our own Youth Creator team — Eva Lynn, Jaise, and Giana — voted on their favorite pieces of everything we received, and here we are proud to share their top five works, along with a little back story from the artists themselves. We encourage you to read and share their works and give them a follow, and help us uplift these young talents!
Sam | THEY/THEM | IG: @scpursuedbyabear | TT: @sckilledbyfire
Photo by Sam
Tell us about your pieceS & how they answer the question of what you are "Proud To Be"
My pieces show who I am proud to be. I believe makeup can be used as a mask, and I use makeup to peel back the mask of emotions that arebuilt up by queer people to hide from society. With my makeup I peel back the mask that I build as a trans person to reveal my true emotions. I am joyful and proud to be me and I encapsulated that in my makeup. Through intentional use of colors like pink blue and white as used in the transgender flag to morphing my face into an alien type creature to show how I feel inside. My pieces exude transgender joy and the feeling of gender euphoria through vibrant colors, expressions of joy and self love, and warm lighting.
Why was it important for you to enter the Proud To Be challenge?
It was important for me to enter the Proud To Be challenge because it was a chance to share my voice as a queer youth. In these times where our rights are constantly under attack and people erase our true identities, it is important for there to be spaces for queer youth to share their voices. We are the future and by sharing my voice I am able to show that we are here, we are queer and we are not going anywhere. By uplifting queer voices and telling stories of joy it shows a type of resistance. We are joyful in spite of the hate and negativity, we are joyful in spite of everything against us. I am proud to have always been authentically myself and this platform was the perfect way to share that.
Anything else you'd like for people to know about you and/or your art?
Art is a form of activism and social change, a way for us to share our human experiences. Through art I communicate my feelings about the world and explore my emotions in an attempt to reach something deep within myself, my primal urge to create, as well as to provide audiences with new perspectives on the world. Art is my voice and way to rise up and speak my opinion and truth into the world. I am inspired by people who dare to be different. I am an artist because it is how I express myself. I have been able to find myself through many forms of art and express things that words alone can’t. I will always create art that sparks a revolution. My creativity is funneled through emotion whether it be a performance art piece, makeup design, or fiber arts project. Specifically with makeup, when I feel large emotions I depict them on my skin. This idea of unleashing my creativity helped me through a rough time in my life. I was worrying about the injustices and threats to the civil rights of the LGBTQ+ community, specifically transgender youth, and dealing with my own problems facing constant transgender microaggressions at my school. I also create when I feel a connection to my work. As a performance artist I create work based on things that affect me. I created a piece called “300 and Counting” in which I had performers speaking found texts from anti LGBTQ+ bills and testimony surrounding those bills. I also created a piece called “This Performance is Illegal” about the ludicrous Drag bans coming out of Florida and Tennessee in which I put a member of the audience in drag and then “arrested them” to show how asinine the law was. I use my creative side to express my emotions and subsequently I heal through creativity and being able to unlock and share my story with the safety net of art behind me.
Note: Sam submitted 3 incredible pieces for the Proud To Be Challenge — this is the favorite piece from them!
Lily | she/her | @Cerebral.stew
Painting by Lily
Tell us about your piece & how it answers the question of what you are "Proud To Be"
My piece, “Moths of Mesa,” is an acrylic painting that speaks for my love of Colorado’s Grand Valley and how proud I am to say I live here. The moths also represent the life I feel the LGBTQ+ community brings to the area. Some of my biggest supporters belong to this community, and I love them so much. They bring so much joy and creativity to the valley. Without these unique and beautiful people, the Grand Valley wouldn’t be the same.
Why was it important for you to enter the Proud To Be challenge?
It was important to me that I take pride in where I live, the people I surround myself with, and my love for creating. Moths of Mesa is a blend of all of these elements.
Anything else you'd like for people to know about you and/or your art?
I am always looking for artistic projects, collaborations, commissions, and love to connect with people who love art as much as I do.
Lily and her painting “Moths of Mesa”
bam! art club | they/them | IG: @Bam_biz_art & @Trail_lamp_youth_services
Painting by BAM! Art Club
Tell us about your piece & how it answers the question of what members of the BAM! ART Club are "Proud To Be"
This art piece describes the LGBTQ+ community. The creatures symbolize the diversity and uniqueness of our community. The eclipse represents society trying to shut us out but we always find a way to shine through.
Why was it important for you to enter the Proud To Be challenge?
It was important that BAM! Art Club had our youth collaborate on a piece that represented how they are proud to be themselves. Give our LGBTQ+ youth a voice by using their creativity and sharing their story through art. Entering this contest empowered the youth that helped create the piece and we couldn't be more proud of their bravery for submitting such an emotional piece together. This showed them that there is a large community out there that supports them.
Anything else you'd like for people to know about you and/or your art?
BAM! (Business Art Mentorship) is an initiative of Trail Lamp Youth Services that empowers underserved and LGBTQ+ youth through art and business mentorship with local artists in Mesa County. The program focuses on providing safe spaces and valuable educational experiences to help youth develop their artistic and entrepreneurial skills while fostering a sense of community and support.
The BAM! Biz Art Club and their painting
