After cutting off her long, curly hair, Conjay Dahn picked up charcoal and drew it on a canvas.
Tuesday night, Dahn, a UF exploratory sophomore, presented her artwork for the Queer and Trans People of Color art show in the LGBTQ Affairs suite. The show included artwork from five queer and transgender people of color.
Dahn submitted a watercolor piece titled “Forward,” as well as a mixed media piece composed of charcoal, chalk and paint titled “I am My Hair” and two untitled watercolor pieces.
“The painting was an ode to me figuring out more about myself and figuring out what my hair represented,” the 19-year-old said. “The painting wasn’t just my hair, it was who I was as a person.”
Dahn said she hopes the show inspires other queer and transgender students of color to express themselves through art.
“All of these pieces tell a story and sometimes it’s easier to display a story through some type of artwork,” Dahn said. “I hope people can look at these pieces and see more than what’s on the page.”
The show’s theme was “definition,” said Mustafa Hammad, the organizer of the show and UF political science sophomore. The show, attended by about 25 students, gave members of the UF student organization QTPOC Collective a chance to redefine themselves and work together against white supremacy on campus, Hammad said.
“In Gainesville, we don’t have a place to express our individuality and our artwork,” the 19-year-old said. “Our goal was to establish a presence on campus to show that not only are we here, but we’re thriving through our artwork.”
Alongside the paintings and sketches, students gave spoken word performances.
Billy Huff, the director of LGBTQ affairs, said if the LGBTQ community wants change and visibility, it’s important to secure rights for the most marginalized people in the community first.
“I think that this art show will allow people to see the perspective that all LGBTQ people are different and have different experiences and ways of expressing themselves,” Huff said. “There’s not just one story.”
