In creating the Our Queer Kin Mosaic Mural, I sought to weave together the rich tapestry of queer history, celebrating the vibrancy and resilience of our community. This mural is an act of remembering and reclamation. It features over 150 portraits of queer elders, ancestors, and contemporaries, alongside symbols of queer nature, each meticulously crafted to honor their stories and significance. These representations are humble invitations to viewers to engage actively with our history and to see themselves as part of this ongoing narrative.

The use of French doors as the mural's backdrop is deliberate. They stand as symbols of visibility and transition, reflecting the dual realities of queer lives—navigating between the spaces of being seen and unseen, public and private. These thresholds invite viewers to cross into a space of understanding and acceptance, echoing the doors' transparency and openness which challenge the violent barriers of prejudice.

Through the interplay of light and reflection, the mural changes throughout the day and with the movement of viewers, symbolizing the fluidity of identity and the ever-evolving nature of queer life. The colors, drawn from the Progressive Pride flag, not only beautify but also politicize, centering the narratives of BIPOC and transgender members of our community, ensuring that this mural stands as a beacon of inclusivity and intersectionality.

This project is deeply rooted in the principles of art therapy and queer worldmaking, utilizing the transformative power of art to foster a dialogue of liberation, healing, and empowerment. It is a celebration of queer resilience, a testament to the power of visibility, and an invitation to all who engage with it to contribute to the continual shaping of our collective queer story.

As an artist and art therapist, this mural is my homage to the beautiful, diverse, and resilient queer community—a community that continues to inspire and teach me every day. It is my hope that this mural not only educates and informs but also serves as a site for reflection, inspiration, and connection. 

Inspired by my participation in the creation of Wanda Montemayor's community mosaic mural, The Uvalde Love Project, I proposed the idea of crafting my own mural within the shared space of our art therapy studio. Granted complete creative freedom by Montemayor, I envisioned incorporating portraits of queer elders, ancestors, contemporaries, and symbols of queer nature. The relational dynamics of these images with each other and the space were initially undefined.

The installation of new, large French doors in the studio's workshop area sparked my vision for a composition. These doors symbolize transition and visibility, essential themes in the queer community's journey towards acceptance and affirmation. They provide a physical passage into a sanctuary where queer identities are openly celebrated, affirmed, and explored By facilitating a dialogue between the private and public spheres through these transparent yet boundary-defining doors, the mural and its setting challenge traditional notions of visibility and engagement in queer spaces. They symbolize the ongoing negotiation of revealing and concealing that characterizes many queer lives, providing a powerful metaphor for the experiences of visibility, invisibility, and transition that are deeply embedded in the queer experience.

With new constraints on size, scale, and environmental considerations such as lighting and viewing distance, I began by sculpting portrait tiles from roughly quarter-inch slabs of white porcelain clay, starting with Marsha P. Johnson. Aware of my precarious relationship with the glazing process from previous ceramic work, I sought methods to test material options without compromising the sculpted portraits.

Consulting with Wanda, I created press molds from additional slabs, shaping them to capture the intricate details of the original bisque-fired sculptures. This ensured that each iterative copy maintained sharp fidelity. After firing the molds, I pressed new slabs into them to produce replicable tiles for glaze testing—a critical step given the labor-intensive nature of the material explorations. The primary challenge was the feathering of intricate linework from Stroke and Coat glazes, which proved unpredictable across various bisque preparation techniques. Seeking alternatives, I tested monochrome decals, various underglazes, and finally settled on Designer Liner atop the painted portraits for its precise detail retention. 

My research continued across various mediums—art books, blogs, websites, videos, social media—guiding the intuitive sculpting of each portrait based on the quality of references and my aesthetic response. As the project progressed, 125 hand painted portraits were created alongside selected floral elements, imagining a collage for the mural composition. A vertical arrangement of Pride flag colors was chosen to unify the diverse elements and enhance the viewing experience, each color highlighting different aspects of the repeated floral and portrait motifs. A brown and black border was added to anchor the vibrant display, and text tiles were introduced to further engage the mural space for education and inquiry by listing additional icon names and significant events and organizations across queer history.

Adjacent to the mural, we installed a name plaque featuring a QR code linking to an online resource detailing each element. The plaque was accented with mirror tiles and gold luster, framing the title and enhancing its significance as a sacred gift to our community—a testament to the enduring beauty and resilience of queer kinship.

Our Queer Kin aims to not only serve as a visual celebration of queer history and diversity but also functions as a transformative space that bridges the personal and political realms within the context of art therapy and liberatory community engagement. Through its symbolic and functional roles, the mosaic enriches the therapeutic environment, fostering an atmosphere where the intersections of art, identity, and social justice converge to inspire personal growth and collective action.