Pride Month Illustration and My Favorite Queer TV Shows!
Hi Travelers!
Happy Pride Month! For anyone who doesn’t know, I came out as queer a few years ago (bisexual, lesbian, hell if I know, pick your favorite). Thank you to everyone in my life who has supported me, I’m super lucky to have the support system that I do.
I wanted to write a blog post that includes an illustration that I made for pride month this year and also share some of my favorite queer TV shows! Media is super important to me and there are some shows that have meant so much to me in learning to accept myself and be more proud.
The illustration I made is in a style I’ve been exploring lately with a computer/bulletin board layout. Since coming out, I’ve loved the theme of fruit, especially citrus, as a symbol for queerness. I’ve wanted to include it in my art for a while now, and I’ve finally started to (stay tuned for glass work including citrus, it will be a bit of time but I’m super excited for it!). “Fruity” by Chloe Moriondo is a great queer song that’s a ton of fun, and I decided to place the text chat there because I have had this said to me when coming out and I think it’s a rude thing to say, so it’s there as kind of a rebellion to that.
The drawing was sketched on procreate, printed and traced, and then colored with alcohol markers and fine liner pens. I am not one to use a ton of bright colors in my work, but fruit-themed pride month art had to be an exception lol.
Now onto my favorite media! I highly recommend all of these shows (plus a couple movies) and won’t ramble on too long about them, but I’m so happy to give more info or discuss if you are interested! So in no particular order:
The Owl House
The Owl House lives in my heart as one of my favorite shows of all time for so many reasons, but one of those is the most wholesome and normalized queer romance(s). It’s about a girl who wants to be a witch, finds her way to a magical realm and finds a family there, then they all fight to overthrow a corrupt system. I relate a lot to the main character who felt too weird for her world. The story is fantastic, funny, and heart warming and is on Disney plus. I recommend this for kids and adults alike.
Heartstopper
Heartstopper is SO GOOD AHH! Heartstopper came out relatively close to when I came out and it helped me through so much. It’s two boys in high school who begin to date, one of them discovering and coming to terms with his sexuality at the same time, and it’s done so well. Soundtrack SLAPS and the Webtoon it’s based off of is also great. Heartstopper is everything I wanted Love Simon to be, and there isn’t anything wrong with Love Simon, but there were some changes made from book to movie that I take issue with. There are currently 2 seasons of this show out, with a third/final season on the way and it’s on Netflix!
Sasaki and Miyano
This is a BL (boy love) manga/anime. I have not read the manga, so I can only speak for the show, but it’s adorable and just a happy watch. It’s two boys in high school who bond through reading queer manga and just slowly get to know and fall for each other. It’s a light hearted cute time and it’s on Crunchyroll.
Yuri on Ice
This show is about the relationship between two figure skaters and trying to win a world-wide tournament. It’s more about ice skating than anything else, but it’s a great watch and the animation is beautiful. It’s a more niche recommendation but if you are queer, like ice skating, or both, go watch it, it’s fantastic. (On Crunchyroll)
The Stranger by the Shore (explicit)
This is an anime slice of life movie about two boys and their relationship over time. It isn’t as happy as some of the others and includes some of the loneliness and self hatred that can come from being gay, but I think the story is beautiful and one of the characters is autistic coded which I love. There is a pretty explicit sex scene just so people know, but I think it’s well-done and sweet. (On Crunchyroll)
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (Semi-explicit)
This is also a movie, it’s on Hulu, and it’s in French. It’s set in the 18th century and it’s about a female portrait artist who comes to paint a woman in an arranged marriage and the time they spend together. There are genuine painting scenes in it which the artist in me loves. There are almost no men in this movie, it’s visually striking with its colors and scenery, and is just a gorgeous story. It’s probably my favorite queer period piece that I’ve seen.
If you’ve made it this far, thank you so much for reading about my drawing and my opinions! I hope you had a happy Pride Month and I will talk to you soon! :)
~Jess
