Brian Rau (he/him)

Brian Rau is an illustrator and graphic designer who lives and works in Chicago. He does commercial work for brands and agencies in addition to producing original work that he sells in his web shop at brianrau.com. Rau’s work combines myriad textures, geometric shapes and a minimalist color palette to tell stories of strength, motion, tension, harmony, love, nature and humanity.

“Eyes are the window to the soul.’ For Lucy & Yak, I focused on self-expression and inner beauty. When someone embraces a drag persona, they often exude a level of confidence and charisma that comes from within. This empowerment allows them to overcome insecurities and societal judgments, highlighting their inner strength and self-assurance. The confidence projected through drag is a reflection of their inner beauty and self-belief.

Performing in drag, especially in environments that may not be entirely accepting, requires immense courage and resilience. This bravery and perseverance in the face of adversity highlight the performer’s inner beauty and strength of character. In essence, drag is a powerful medium through which individuals can express the depths of their inner beauty. It allows performers to channel their creativity, confidence, emotions, humour, and compassion, creating a vibrant and authentic expression of who they truly are.’

Fox Fisher (he/they)

Fox Fisher is an artist, author, filmmaker and trans campaigner. Fox was awarded an Honorary Doctorate for their work on trans issues in the media. Fox produces, directs and edits films via My Genderation, consultant for trans storylines for TV and Netflix, does media interactions via All About Trans and is a trustee of Trans Pride, Brighton. Fox was Artist in Residence at Homotopia and screen-prints LIVE at Tate Modern and V&A. Fox’s books: The Trans Pride Coloring Book, Trans Teen Survival Guide and Workbook. Their gentle kid's book, hated by the Daily Mail, was gifted to Piers Morgan during an interview. Fox was born in London and currently lives in Brighton with their partner, three cats and a pointy dog.

'As a long time fan of Lucy & Yak, I really enjoyed creating a design for Pride 2024 and beyond. The dungarees and shorts are such a lovely quality, so soft and flowy, perfect for the summer. 

My inspiration came from the bright and colourful aesthetics that Lucy & Yak are known for, combined with the celebratory aspect of Pride. Including the Progress Flag felt important as it’s the most up to date version of the pride flag, designed by an intersex activist Valentino Vecchietti.'

Steve Aparicio (he/him)

Steve is an illustrator and visual artist based in El Salvador. Steve knows that finding your voice and making it seen is hard and that each person from the community has waged their own struggle and found courage. ‘The idea is to represent courage and strength with a tiger on fire. The tiger is one of the most powerful animals on the planet.'

The power of being yourself //

'As people in the LGBTQ+ community, one of the biggest challenges we face is finding the courage to be authentic and express ourselves freely. Finding our voice and making it seen is hard, but being authentic is one of the most powerful things we can do. Each member of the community has waged his own struggle and found courage and in the process of they story 

For the design I want to represent the courage and strength with a tiger on fire. The tiger is one of the most powerful animals on the planet and the fire is a symbolism of the struggle that each of us has had to go through.'

Fredde Lanka (they/he)

Freddie is a queer artist in London illustrating Smutty Silly, comics and illustrations. Freddie’s visual art style is synonymous with nightlife and drag cabaret scenes in London, Birmingham and Stockholm, capturing the community at its most vibrant and diverse.

'When I start a new composition I often start by drawing circles and other shapes to see what has a nice flow. I don't think it comes to anyone's surprise that as a gay I love drawing butts, I also like that butts are a universal part of our body, we all have them. When I can I tend to lean into humour so the idea of two butt cheeks clapping and saying love just felt right for the brief..'

FlatBoy (they/them)

FlatBoy is a Welsh illustrator and printmaker centering trans and gender non conforming people. FlatBoy attempts to capture the connections between trans people and the sense of deep, unbreakable love that flows through the community. 

My artwork pictures an underwater scene of trans people swimming, their bodies shaped in ways that subtly spell out the words 'trans joy'. I chose to focus on the importance of swimming to my own trans experience as well as the wider community. I know so many trans people who are water babies. But swimming is something that is often off limits for trans people. 

T.C. Oakes-Monger captures this for me better than I ever could In their book 'All The Things They Said We Couldn't Have: Stories of Trans Joy': 

"Years ago, I remember reading a long thread on Twitter that asked the following question: What would you do as a trans person if there was no transphobia for one day? It produced a heartbreaking and joyous mix of responses, from wearing a favourite pink dress, to coming out, to trying a new lipstick, to playing sport. But the thing that kept coming up again and again was to swim. To swim in a pool with friends, to swim on holiday and soak up the sun, to jump into the ocean and gasp with the cold of it. So many voices that said if they had that day, they should just like to swim.’

Frances Cannon (they/them)

Frances is a queer, multidisciplinary artist based in Melbourne/Narm. Frances’ work examines ideas of body-love and body-loathing, anxiety, relationships, sex and sexuality, gender and bodily functions. 

‘Working with Lucy and Yak to create a pride themed drawing was such a joy. The other artists who created alongside me made such gorgeous drawings, it’s such a privilege to be printed on a fabric and made into cute clothes alongside them!  I was inspired to make a drawing of a big colourful person, celebrating their queer fat body, like I try to do every day!’

Bhavani Bala (she/they)

Bhav’s work exists to spark joy in the viewer by using vibrant colours and whimsical themes. Bhav’s inspiration is drawn from video games, film and from her own lived experiences as a third culture kid and with her struggles with mental health. 

‘I chose to focus on my cultural background - my name (Bhavani) means the goddess of war and strength, who rides tigers into battle. So the tiger in our culture is a symbol of divine power - which is the strength I want to imbibe in my sense of pride in my identity. These tigers are done in various pride flag colours; I also looked at traditional east asian paintings for the geometric poses (and my cat, Kevin). They are superimposed onto a background of Indian rangoli (floor art) designs and patterns, as well as traditional Kolam designs from my South Indian upbringing.’