FEATURED IN KC STUDIO MAGAZINE
Past Futures is an exhibition and performance showcase inviting queer artists to explore the cyclical nature of history and identity. As queer people, our experiences often echo across generations—through personal discovery, community-building, and cultural shifts. Whether through familial legacies, evolving social landscapes, or the rhythms of self-expression, we continuously re-imagine our futures by looking to our past.
We invite visual and performance artists to reflect on recurring experiences through history and these repeated cycles—how memory, resilience, and transformation shape queer narratives. What lessons do we carry forward? What histories do we reclaim? How does our past guide the future we create?
WHERE: Zhou B Art Center, Spirit Gallery
Gallery + Exhibition Programming under Upcoming Events
Duration: June 13th - August 2ndption-tickets-1371583506189?aff=ebdsoporgprofile
Name: Junie Brown
Title of Piece: Hatched
Size: 36" x 36"
Medium: Oil on canvas
Price: 700
Description: Based in Kansas City, Junie is an artist and student whose work delves into the overlapping identities of queer people and people of color. Drawing from personal experiences and community narratives, Junie weaves identity, resilience, and belonging into stunning oil paintings. Through bold visual language, Junie explores the complexities of race, sexuality, gender, and culture, creating immersive pieces that encourage dialogue and reflection. Their work not only represents but also empowers, offering a space where queer people and people of color can see themselves reflected in ways that are both authentic and affirming.
Name: Junie Brown
Title of Piece: Idol
Size: 26" x 30"
Medium: acrylic + glitter on velvet
Price: 550
Description: Based in Kansas City, Junie is an artist and student whose work delves into the overlapping identities of queer people and people of color. Drawing from personal experiences and community narratives, Junie weaves identity, resilience, and belonging into stunning oil paintings. Through bold visual language, Junie explores the complexities of race, sexuality, gender, and culture, creating immersive pieces that encourage dialogue and reflection. Their work not only represents but also empowers, offering a space where queer people and people of color can see themselves reflected in ways that are both authentic and affirming.
Name: Lucas Nguyen
Title of Piece: Gaysian Comfort
Size: 84 x 84 x 2 inches
Medium: Fleece Fabric, Dyed Cotton & Silk, Dyed Synthetic, Rainbow Organza, Inktense Colored Pencils, Batting, Sashiko Thread
Price: 1000
Description: My fiber artwork surrounds the nuances of being a Queer Asian American in how “othering” occurs in both communities and the importance of finding comfort in being a Queer Asian American. I incorporate many traditional techniques & materials from Asia to bring along the rich cultural history and often employ varying symbols to represent Queerness. I will explore combining those ideologies ro create tactile fiber artwork to allow for the sense of interactivity. The Asian fruit plays off of the Queer term "Fruity" referenced in media today as well a queer reference in the past—the utilization of Asian fruit to symbolize a syncretism between Asian American and Queer culture. Also, I will often depict Asian food in my artwork because of its easy ability for many Asian Americans to find comfort in and food as a symbol for being a gateway into a culture. I am inspired by Queer Asian American drag queens in their intersectionality of gender, sexuality, and culture through their preformative acts. Also, trying to embody that kind of change in my own artwork and give visibility to a niche portion of the Queer community.
Name: Craig Auge
Title of Piece: Basement Tapes; Improvised Spikes
Size: 26"x21"x2"
Medium: Salvaged wood panel and found painted wood, erasers, black glue
Price: 500
Description: Maximalist tendencies and minimalist desires are strategically negotiated through collage and ephemeral salvage assemblage. I aim to activate the materials of memory and explore the nexus of queer anxiety and joy. Fragments of familiar objects, forms, and coded images are alchemized to evoke coded patterns, mementos, and projections.
Name: Craig Auge
Title of Piece: Chart (Agenda)
Size: 10"x11"
Medium: Collage
Price: 150
Description: Maximalist tendencies and minimalist desires are strategically negotiated through collage and ephemeral salvage assemblage. I aim to activate the materials of memory and explore the nexus of queer anxiety and joy. Fragments of familiar objects, forms, and coded images are alchemized to evoke coded patterns, mementos, and projections.
Name: Craig Auge
Title of Piece: Erasure '95
Size: 18"x14"
Medium: Found erasers, segment of found wood panel
Price: 300
Description: Maximalist tendencies and minimalist desires are strategically negotiated through collage and ephemeral salvage assemblage. I aim to activate the materials of memory and explore the nexus of queer anxiety and joy. Fragments of familiar objects, forms, and coded images are alchemized to evoke coded patterns, mementos, and projections.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Talisha
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Kofi
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Tanya
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Jameson
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Sabina
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Ileen
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Rashaun
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Celia
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Gabriella
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler’s loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Wolfe Brack
Title of Piece: Braxton
Size: 4x7 inches
Medium: Polymer clay, acrylic, jeweler's loupe on wood
Price: 275
Description: I present these works to you as visual playgrounds. Spaces created for your eyes and mind to wander, discover, and get lost in. Take your time with them. You’ll find something new with every viewing. I call these pieces Quirks. Each one represents the thoughts, experiences, habits, and things overheard that make up our everyday realities, personalities and personal idiosyncrasies. They’re tiny, as each is just a small part of who we are, and presented under magnification as specimens for personal and interpersonal examination. The experiences of each Quirk are meant to be humorous but relatable. Though the faces gazing back may look different from you, my hope is that you’ll feel a sense of shared experience and connection. Maybe you’ve had a similar feeling, worked through the same dilemma, or know someone else who has. Either way, most likely, you’ve been or met these people before.
Name: Hugo Zelada Romero
Title of Piece: Desire Flows Empty into the Sea
Size: 4x8x5 inches
Medium: HYPER PLA 3D PRINT, DIGITAL COLLAGE
Price: 250
Description: “Desire Flows Empty into the Sea” HyperPLA 3D print, digital collage of the Bruce from “Finding Nemo”, a lighthouse, a droplet, mounted on metal hardware. This sculpture presents a layered narrative where cinematic references blur the lines between control and chaos, instinct and reflection. The lighthouse, inspired by Robert Eggers’ The Lighthouse, symbolizes isolation, madness, and mythic descent, is given a queer reading. This is further reflected in Bruce, the shark from Finding Nemo, whose ironic mantra, “Fish are friends, not food,” both conceals and amplifies his latent violence. The relationship between Bruce and the droplet, whether blood, semen, or water, embodies the mutability of desire, slipping between complex terrain where desire is both nourishing and dangerous.
Kai Johnson
Title of Piece: More Love
Size: 18x24 in
Medium: Graphite and Digital Color
Price: 150
Description: More Love is the second part to Operation, where the heart character has top surgery and their “wings”. The character has tattoos that signify elements of love. The Birth of Venus by Botticelli and swans can also be found in the background to emphasize love, beauty, and harmony.
Name: Kai Johnson
Title of Piece: Operation
Size: 18x24 in
Medium: Graphite and Digital Color
Price: 150
Description: Operation is an illustration describing the experi- ence of people who identify as transgender and the process of gender affirming surgeries. The scene resembles the classic board game, Operation, extending the metaphor to choose between “eggs” or “nuts”. Around the room, there are classic Operation pieces and cards, as well as play money running away or being stuck, representing the need to cover costs. The character on the table also holds a ring box to symbolize a “marriage” to the idea of being free and having the ability to finally “fly”.
Name: Nettie Zan
Title of Piece: A Gut Feeling
Size: 9" x 12"
Medium: acrylic and posca on canvas
Price: 100
Description: Nettie Zan is a river rat anarchist, queer trance fanatic, and an old-fashioned all around artist. They have studied at the Marina Abramovic Institute in Greece, they have won the curator award at the Fermi particle accelerator gallery in Illinois, are equally prone to daydreams of geometry as they are suckling at the breast of Ganesh. Zan’s new novel, “at the intersection of hopelessness and salvation” is available via their socials.
Name: Moe Leady
Title of Piece: Three Graces (Stuck)
Size: 14" x 19.25"
Medium: Acrylic and graphite on paper
Price: 950
Description: Exposure. Nude versus naked. Intimacy. All vulnerable topics that I consider while working with the figure, particularly, in this close-up capacity where escape from the figure is impossible without moving on entirely. I enjoy walking the line of nude and naked to push the boundary of how we have come to accept certain types of exposure and where. My soft and hazy material approach lends itself well to the line of thought of both inviting intimacy and questioning nakedness. What kind of mark is too forward in thought or contrast that it makes the same composition into something vulgar or alarming? What composition is too central or front facing that the subject now has no sense of not being seen? At points my work is possibly a little crass in terms of exposure but never in terms of intention. The only time my personal comfort comes into play within my work is when I need to expose it on social media. I hesitate. Social media is an important game in the world we live in but one with more rules than I initially realized when I started playing. But, my main issue with the view of nude/naked art on social media platforms is that it simplifies it down to one thing. Art is rarely one thing. When playing into making nude art into socially acceptable social media fodder, we push the figure into abstraction or roboticism, or cut the composition to avoid doing either. Social media’s “community guidelines” affect the kind of contemporary art we are seeing and consuming on a daily basis; and although nude art has been a foundation for thousands of years we’re seeing a relative censorship of it now because platforms consider it crass or adult only content. That is not to say that nude art does not exist at all in this sphere, because it does, but only in a certain frame, a socially acceptable one. I generally believe this censorship will lead to a lack of understanding of the historical impact of nude art and at some point will make it overly sexual and humorous to the general public because of the air of taboo now surrounding the contemporary versions thanks to social media.
Name: Moe Leady
Title of Piece: Stranger Stranger and Outie
Size: 16" x 28"
Medium: Acrylic and colored pencil on panel
Price: 2600
Description: Exposure. Nude versus naked. Intimacy. All vulnerable topics that I consider while working with the figure, particularly, in this close-up capacity where escape from the figure is impossible without moving on entirely. I enjoy walking the line of nude and naked to push the boundary of how we have come to accept certain types of exposure and where. My soft and hazy material approach lends itself well to the line of thought of both inviting intimacy and questioning nakedness. What kind of mark is too forward in thought or contrast that it makes the same composition into something vulgar or alarming? What composition is too central or front facing that the subject now has no sense of not being seen? At points my work is possibly a little crass in terms of exposure but never in terms of intention. The only time my personal comfort comes into play within my work is when I need to expose it on social media. I hesitate. Social media is an important game in the world we live in but one with more rules than I initially realized when I started playing. But, my main issue with the view of nude/naked art on social media platforms is that it simplifies it down to one thing. Art is rarely one thing. When playing into making nude art into socially acceptable social media fodder, we push the figure into abstraction or roboticism, or cut the composition to avoid doing either. Social media’s “community guidelines” affect the kind of contemporary art we are seeing and consuming on a daily basis; and although nude art has been a foundation for thousands of years we’re seeing a relative censorship of it now because platforms consider it crass or adult only content. That is not to say that nude art does not exist at all in this sphere, because it does, but only in a certain frame, a socially acceptable one. I generally believe this censorship will lead to a lack of understanding of the historical impact of nude art and at some point will make it overly sexual and humorous to the general public because of the air of taboo now surrounding the contemporary versions thanks to social media.
Name: Moe Leady
Title of Piece: Nighttime Showers
Size: 14 x 14 inches
Medium: Oil on paper
Price: 850
Description: Exposure. Nude versus naked. Intimacy. All vulnerable topics that I consider while working with the figure, particularly, in this close-up capacity where escape from the figure is impossible without moving on entirely. I enjoy walking the line of nude and naked to push the boundary of how we have come to accept certain types of exposure and where. My soft and hazy material approach lends itself well to the line of thought of both inviting intimacy and questioning nakedness. What kind of mark is too forward in thought or contrast that it makes the same composition into something vulgar or alarming? What composition is too central or front facing that the subject now has no sense of not being seen? At points my work is possibly a little crass in terms of exposure but never in terms of intention. The only time my personal comfort comes into play within my work is when I need to expose it on social media. I hesitate. Social media is an important game in the world we live in but one with more rules than I initially realized when I started playing. But, my main issue with the view of nude/naked art on social media platforms is that it simplifies it down to one thing. Art is rarely one thing. When playing into making nude art into socially acceptable social media fodder, we push the figure into abstraction or roboticism, or cut the composition to avoid doing either. Social media’s “community guidelines” affect the kind of contemporary art we are seeing and consuming on a daily basis; and although nude art has been a foundation for thousands of years we’re seeing a relative censorship of it now because platforms consider it crass or adult only content. That is not to say that nude art does not exist at all in this sphere, because it does, but only in a certain frame, a socially acceptable one. I generally believe this censorship will lead to a lack of understanding of the historical impact of nude art and at some point will make it overly sexual and humorous to the general public because of the air of taboo now surrounding the contemporary versions thanks to social media
Name: Moe Leady
Title of Piece: Crush (Part One)
Size: 8 x 8 inches
Medium: Acrylic, colored pencil, acrylic ink, and india ink
Price: 700
Description: Exposure. Nude versus naked. Intimacy. All vulnerable topics that I consider while working with the figure, particularly, in this close-up capacity where escape from the figure is impossible without moving on entirely. I enjoy walking the line of nude and naked to push the boundary of how we have come to accept certain types of exposure and where. My soft and hazy material approach lends itself well to the line of thought of both inviting intimacy and questioning nakedness. What kind of mark is too forward in thought or contrast that it makes the same composition into something vulgar or alarming? What composition is too central or front facing that the subject now has no sense of not being seen? At points my work is possibly a little crass in terms of exposure but never in terms of intention. The only time my personal comfort comes into play within my work is when I need to expose it on social media. I hesitate. Social media is an important game in the world we live in but one with more rules than I initially realized when I started playing. But, my main issue with the view of nude/naked art on social media platforms is that it simplifies it down to one thing. Art is rarely one thing. When playing into making nude art into socially acceptable social media fodder, we push the figure into abstraction or roboticism, or cut the composition to avoid doing either. Social media’s “community guidelines” affect the kind of contemporary art we are seeing and consuming on a daily basis; and although nude art has been a foundation for thousands of years we’re seeing a relative censorship of it now because platforms consider it crass or adult only content. That is not to say that nude art does not exist at all in this sphere, because it does, but only in a certain frame, a socially acceptable one. I generally believe this censorship will lead to a lack of understanding of the historical impact of nude art and at some point will make it overly sexual and humorous to the general public because of the air of taboo now surrounding the contemporary versions thanks to social media.
Name: Nathan Ford
Title of Piece: Hell is Real (We're Living It)
Size: 25" x 54"
Medium: Cotton Fabric
Price: 1000
Description: Growing up in Ohio I was exposed to an emerging queer scene along with what remains of the bygone American automotive era. As a child, I remember my grandfather recalling his memories of growing up in the railroad industry, as I stumbled upon boxes of paperwork and photographs of my other grandfather working at General Motors. Through family research, I also discovered my great-grandmother was an expert quilter. My family created things with their hands. Manual labor and haptic knowledge are a part of who I am. I create quilts using towels, work wear, and undergarments. In addition to my ancestral connection, I am interested in quilts for their connection to abstracted language, community, and history. I embrace the hand in my work. The wonky, the abstract, and the “non-perfect” are all celebrated. Queer symbols, such as pink triangles, keys, and earrings are also used. My materials, approach, and symbology all work together to complicate traditional quilt language and to communicate issues of status, sexual desire, and personal identity. Through the appropriation of traditional quilt blocks and the application of unconventional domestic materials, I subvert their previous context and access histories that are untold. My quilts reevaluate history and suggest the possibility that queer voices have existed for years in both laborer and quilt communities. Domestic settings historically have functioned as a site of refuge for the queer body - a space for intimacy and freedom. Uniforms and personal ephemera of denim, work shirts and underwear connect queer domestic spaces and laborer communities. I mine through historical and personal archives to dissect the history of clothing and textiles in each community. Through the process of piecing these elements together I suggest the possibility for a queer presence within the rustbelt and automotive industry.
Where are you selling: Both
Name: Nikki Haas
Title of Piece: Stop Taking This Sh*t Out on Me
Size: 15" x 18"
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Price: 400
Description: I am a femme lesbian artist in the Midwest, in a relationship with a butch/masc lesbian. My work explores my side of the butch-femme dynamic—a powerful and historically rich expression of lesbian identity that became most visible in the mid-20th century. I focus on the contradictions embedded in femme identity: strong and soft, beautiful and ugly, mean and kind, seen and hidden. I often embody opposing traits at once, and my work visualizes that tension. Through self-portraits in gargoyle-like, dog-like poses—largely inspired by Paula Rego’s Dog Women—I explore abjection, desire, and rage: emotions often deemed “unfeminine,” yet central to my experience as a queer woman. The color palette in many of my paintings is drawn from the orange-pink lesbian pride flag introduced in 2018, which aimed to include butch lesbians after their exclusion from earlier symbols like the lipstick lesbian flag. My work is deeply informed by cycles of erasure and reclamation within lesbian history. I reflect on how femme identity has been both hyper-visible and misunderstood, often flattened or erased in cultural memory. By referencing past aesthetics, dynamics, and symbols I participate in an evolving archive of queer resilience. My work is both an act of remembrance and transformation, honoring the histories I’ve inherited while pushing toward new expressions of queer embodiment. I reclaim femininity as something both powerful and monstrous while interrogating how female bodies are controlled, sanitized, and mythologized in contemporary visual culture.
Name: Nikki Haas
Title of Piece: I Get Along with Everyone I Meet
Size: 60" x 48"
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Price: 3,000
Description: I am a femme lesbian artist in the Midwest, in a relationship with a butch/masc lesbian. My work explores my side of the butch-femme dynamic—a powerful and historically rich expression of lesbian identity that became most visible in the mid-20th century. I focus on the contradictions embedded in femme identity: strong and soft, beautiful and ugly, mean and kind, seen and hidden. I often embody opposing traits at once, and my work visualizes that tension. Through self-portraits in gargoyle-like, dog-like poses—largely inspired by Paula Rego’s Dog Women—I explore abjection, desire, and rage: emotions often deemed “unfeminine,” yet central to my experience as a queer woman. The color palette in many of my paintings is drawn from the orange-pink lesbian pride flag introduced in 2018, which aimed to include butch lesbians after their exclusion from earlier symbols like the lipstick lesbian flag. My work is deeply informed by cycles of erasure and reclamation within lesbian history. I reflect on how femme identity has been both hyper-visible and misunderstood, often flattened or erased in cultural memory. By referencing past aesthetics, dynamics, and symbols I participate in an evolving archive of queer resilience. My work is both an act of remembrance and transformation, honoring the histories I’ve inherited while pushing toward new expressions of queer embodiment. I reclaim femininity as something both powerful and monstrous while interrogating how female bodies are controlled, sanitized, and mythologized in contemporary visual culture.
Name: Nettie Zan
Title of Piece: Wrangling with Wild Desire
Size: 4'x6'
Medium: sharpie, ink and spray paint on burlap curtain
Price: 750
Description: Nettie Zan is a river rat anarchist, queer trance fanatic, and an old-fashioned all around artist. They have studied at the Marina Abramovic Institute in Greece, they have won the curator award at the Fermi particle accelerator gallery in Illinois, are equally prone to daydreams of geometry as they are suckling at the breast of Ganesh. Zan’s new novel, “at the intersection of hopelessness and salvation” is available via their socials.