Evan Schouten

I have been making art my whole life. I remember as a child drawing abstract figures just human enough to pass. As I got older, I wanted to draw people who I saw on YouTube or in tv shows in a way that captured their essence. That want has never left me — it has only grown and changed with the people I admire and shows I enjoy. As a queer person I am drawn to queer media. I feel it’s very important with all that is going on, especially in the U.S., that queer people are depicted in a positive way. With that, I strive to make a lot of my work about positive queer experiences. I also make a lot of self portraits about my experience as a queer person, though they are “subtly queer,” it is still the backbone of the piece. Simply making art is the backbone of my life as well. If I didn’t have art and the ability to make it I don’t know who I would be.