What does pride mean to you personally?

Pride is a feeling to me: a wonderful feeling. It is all about believing in yourself and encouraging others to do the same. Standing tall and showing that you are in love with who you are. A true act of love. I have not always thought about it this way: I used to believe that being prideful was shameful and selfish behaviour. I am happy I am out of that mindset now: there is nothing self-centred in recognising your worth.


How does queerness translate into your work?

I like to think that everything I do is a little bit queer just because I am in it. But seriously, I always try to incorporate queer elements in my practice: when it comes to collaborating with crew from the community or choosing to create content with LGBTQIA+ themes. I really want to create or get on board with more work that puts queer lives at the centre.

How does your creative practice (or practices) inform other aspects of your life?

I sometimes struggle to recognise myself as a creative, because I pursue many different interests. I get scared that I am leaving creativity behind when I produce films or manage events. And then I remember that I am still pouring my all into them: I am still using my imagination and figuring out how something should run based on what I would desire as an artist. I never stop creating. So, it must also mean that my practice informs everything in my day to day.

⁠Any upcoming projects you'd like to share with our readers?

I have something very exciting coming: I am creating an exhibition focussing on resistance and community (something very on point these days) that will be running late this summer. Other projects are under wraps at the moment, but if you want more info on these and the exhibit I will be posting updates about all of them on my Instagram @ma_rtina_amo.

PETRA is a queer artist and trainee therapist specializing in the exploration of intergenerational and queer trauma. As a theatre director and a poet, PETRA integrates their multifaceted interests into their creative and therapeutic practices. Deeply invested in spirituality, crystals, and all things witchy, PETRA brings a unique, holistic approach to their work. Currently, they study and live in London, continually merging their diverse passions to foster healing and self-expression in both personal and communal contexts.

What does pride mean to you personally?

Pride means being proud of all the aspects of ourselves that we were taught not to be proud of. It's about celebrating both our differences and our similarities. Pride is about opening ourselves to the vast beauty that defines us, while also recognizing the vast limitations that have shaped that beauty. It’s a form of resistance and self-affirmation in a world that often demands conformity. Pride is not just a celebration but a declaration of existence and self-worth, acknowledging our unique experiences and histories.

How does queerness translate into your work?

Queerness is an intrinsic part of who I am, so it naturally permeates my work. It doesn’t define my work explicitly but is inherently present in everything I create. My queerness influences my perspective, my themes, and my approach, infusing my work with the depth and richness of my lived experiences. Queerness, to me, is an ongoing dialogue between my identity and my art.

How does your creative practice (or practices) inform other aspects of your life?

As a trainee drama and movement therapist, my creativity is integral to my therapeutic practice. I draw from my artistic skills to connect with my clients, helping them explore and express their emotions and experiences in a safe and supportive environment. Creativity is a tool for healing and self-discovery, both for my clients and myself. Art is everywhere: it informs my interactions, my problem-solving skills, and my approach to life. My creative practice enhances my empathy, my ability to think outside the box, and my capacity to see the world through multiple lenses. It’s a continuous interplay between my art and my life, each enriching the other.

Any upcoming projects you'd like to share with our readers?

I have worked extensively in theatre, creating opportunities for young people to engage with the arts. Currently, I am the Performing Arts Director for Heliopolis, a youth organization based in Cyprus. We recently performed an ecological choreographic adaptation of The Little Prince called "Crash to Fly". To stay updated on my latest projects, please follow me on Instagram @peetapetres.

Sylver Eulalee Mair is a Black-British Caribbean, Queer jewellery-fashion designer, art director and artist, creating works focused on shedding light on topics overlooked in life, that are personal to themselves, and other marginalised communities but can be understood by a wider audience. Using materials to reflect social commentary, they create sustainable sculptural body adornment, costumes, sets and artworks designed to spark uncomfortable conversations, shift perspectives and stimulate social change. Their inspiration stems from studying the past to imagine new futures and display the rich nuance and history of Black, queer and marginalised experiences that have been historically misrepresented or erased.

What does pride mean to you personally?

Especially as a black and non-binary person, I don’t feel seen or affirmed by Pride Month or the corporate commercialised visibility it provides. The history of Pride Month is important and queer resistance being seen and heard is essential, but true pride to me is more invisible. It is being comfortable in making other people uncomfortable. It’s creating a space internally and externally for yourself to exist authentically and unapologetically.


How does queerness translate into your work?

An essential part of my queerness is the connection to the POC ancestral heritage of gender fluidity and the rejection of the binary hierarchy constructed by colonialism. Therefore in my work, I try to speak to intersectionality as authentically as possible, centring concepts that feature the lived experiences of marginalised people and pushing them to their limits to disrupt binary ways of thinking that fuel so much of what we expect from art and design. A lot of the unwritten rules we abide by in terms of ‘good’ design or art, especially in terms of the colour white or minimalism are heavily underpinned by racism, homophobia, misogyny and fascism so by rejecting them and embracing multiplicity, maximalism and emotion I create work that sparks conversations to inspire social change.

How does your creative practice (or practices) inform other aspects of your life?

My creative practices and my life are deeply intertwined. Often, I feel like life has become a sort of research project for my work. As my work is so connected to expressing experience and emotion, I’m always studying and observing: this could be anything from the textures or colours of the pavement to the way people interact, the language and mannerisms they use to communicate. I’m very research-driven, so experiences or interactions within my life will usually trigger some deep dive into understanding why that thing - be it societal, historical or personal functions the way it does, which will then be visualised in my work.

Any upcoming projects you'd like to share with our readers?

I have just finished my degree in Jewellery Design at Central Saint Martins, so my graduate final collection and accompanying short film is now out. The collection ‘It’s not black and white’ explores who we could be if we not only flipped the script but wrote an entirely new one. Embracing multiplicity, I reconfigure White and Black, situating them in an alternative reality that prioritises truth over comfort. Repurposed “white” plastics embody “White fragility”, utilising the phallus as a critical motif of White supremacy. Meanwhile deadstock and upcycled “black” yarns entangle, building a space of refuge, protest and liberation. Through holistic reclamation I unapologetically assert emotion and experience, depicting the body as a site for decolonisation. Follow me on Instagram @eulalee_ and @eulalee.studio.