Celebrate Montreal Pride 2023 With These Queer Artists

Montreal Pride is just around the corner. As the city is getting ready to celebrate and showcase its diversity and inclusivity, we’ve compiled a list of some of our favourite queer artists to mark the occasion.

These artists have used their creativity and unique perspectives to make an impact on the art world, challenge norms, and simply create beautiful pieces.

Let’s dive into this celebration of queer art and pay tribute to the vibrant LGBTQ+ community this Montreal Pride 2023!

Mickalene Thomas

Mickalene Thomas is an American visual artist known for her elaborate and colourful mixed-media paintings, photographs, and installations. As a lesbian artist, her work challenges heteronormative representations of desire. Many of her pieces feature queer subjects, including herself and her partner, and explore themes of intimacy, pleasure, and eroticism from a black queer perspective.

Keith Haring

Keith Haring was an openly gay artist and used his work to explore themes of sexuality and identity. He was commited to social justice and used his art to address the AIDS crisis, which was often stigmatized and marginalized in the mainstream media. He also founded the Keith Haring Foundation in 1989, which funds not-for-profit groups that help underprivileged children or that engage in AIDS/HIV education, prevention, and care.

Gerda Wegener

Wegener’s art continues to captivate audiences today for its beauty, sensuality and the intimate and loving portrayal of her wife, Lili Elbe. Elbe was a Danish artist and one of the earliest known recipients of gender-affirming surgery.

Gerda Wegener’s art featuring Elbe is important as it contributes to the visibility, representation, and historical documentation of transgender individuals.

It also provides a deeper understanding of the multifaceted connections between art, identity, and personal relationships.

Tamara de Lempicka

Tamara de Lempicka became a prominent figure in the Art Deco movement of the early 20th century. Tamara de Lempicka’s bisexuality played a significant role in her work. Her paintings often depicted strong, confident women, exuding sensuality and empowerment. Her exploration of female sexuality challenged traditional gender roles and presented a more liberated and open perspective on desire.

It’s essential to recognize the immense impact that artists can make through their work. Representation matters, and at Palbric, we believe in the power of art to build a more diverse, inclusive world.

Montreal’s Pride Month is a time to celebrate that and continue fighting for inclusion. By supporting and amplifying queer artists, we can help to create a more just and equitable world for all. So, let’s raise a glass to these iconic artists and the vibrant LGBTQ+ community. Happy Montreal Pride 2023!

Written by Nina Surugue