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Queer and Trans Artists of Color: Stories of Some of Our Lives
A collection of sixteen unique and honest conversations you won't read anywhere else... Mixed-race queer art activist Nia King left a full-time job in an effort to center her life around making art. Grappling with questions of purpose, survival, and compromise, she started a podcast called We Want the Airwaves in order to pick the brains of fellow queer and trans artists of color about their work, their lives, and "making it" - both in terms of success and in terms of survival.
In this collection of interviews, Nia discusses fat burlesque with Magnoliah Black, queer fashion with Kiam Marcelo Junio, interning at Playboy with Janet Mock, dating gay Latino Republicans with Julio Salgado, intellectual hazing with Kortney Ryan Ziegler, gay gentrification with Van Binfa, getting a book deal with Virgie Tovar, the politics of black drag with Micia Mosely, evading deportation with Yosimar Reyes, weird science with Ryka Aoki, gay public sex in Africa with Nick Mwaluko, thin privilege with Fabian Romero, the tyranny of "self-care" with Lovemme Corazon, "selling out" with Miss Persia and Daddie$ Pla$tik, the self-employed art activist hustle with Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarsinha, and much, much more. Welcome to the future of QPOC art activism.
In this collection of interviews, Nia discusses fat burlesque with Magnoliah Black, queer fashion with Kiam Marcelo Junio, interning at Playboy with Janet Mock, dating gay Latino Republicans with Julio Salgado, intellectual hazing with Kortney Ryan Ziegler, gay gentrification with Van Binfa, getting a book deal with Virgie Tovar, the politics of black drag with Micia Mosely, evading deportation with Yosimar Reyes, weird science with Ryka Aoki, gay public sex in Africa with Nick Mwaluko, thin privilege with Fabian Romero, the tyranny of "self-care" with Lovemme Corazon, "selling out" with Miss Persia and Daddie$ Pla$tik, the self-employed art activist hustle with Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarsinha, and much, much more. Welcome to the future of QPOC art activism.
242 pages, Paperback
First published June 5, 2014
17 people are currently reading
2311 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
July 11, 2016
A wake-up call. Eye-opening. Healing. Soothing. Amazing. I learned so much.
February 2, 2015
Each of these interviews is strong, thoughtful, intelligent and eye-opening. It's a book that ought to be required reading for new artists finding their footing, people who want to make a difference in the world, people who want tips on how to be inclusive, people who want to learn deeper compassion, people who are struggling to find (or project) their voice, and...well, everybody really. Highly recommended.
September 28, 2015
This book was so much of what I needed. My biggest complaint is that it was too short. Nia King is definitely one of my personal role models, so I was super excited to hear about the creation of this book. The only thing better than getting to read a book written by someone you look up to so much, is getting to read a book filled with interviews filled with more people you admire! I'll admit the interview style to writing isn't always my first choice -- I'm really comfortable reading novels and theory, and this book doesn't neatly fit into either of those categories. At the same time, each of Nia's guests told a super compelling story, with just the right balance of "personal life story" stuff and tried-and-true wisdom about making it as a qtpoc art activist in this day and age. As someone who's always wanted to grow my art, hearing from folks who share my own experiences was great. I'm really looking forward to the sequel.
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October 3, 2014709.22 Q382 2014
June 7, 2019
These were well transcribed interviews, but I probably would have enjoyed just listening to them audiobook style.
October 29, 2014
I’ve been a fan of Nia’s podcast (and her own personal work) since I met her at Brooklyn Zine Fest last year. This book is interviews transcribed from her podcast. It is as brilliant, beautiful, and diverse as the people being interviewed. There is at least a nugget of good advice or insight in each of these interviews that most people will relate to and several of them will either inspire you to look the artist up or to create something amazing of your own.
December 12, 2014
I found this book in the bathroom of a queer-friendly coop I was a house guest in, in a stack of books with the Sandman and Notes from Gaza.
These interviews are honest. They are soulful. They are about art and race and sexuality and light up in a million spots for me. There's practical advice within, too, but above all this book inspires because it shines minority artists in the spotlight and showers aspiring artists with role models.
These interviews are honest. They are soulful. They are about art and race and sexuality and light up in a million spots for me. There's practical advice within, too, but above all this book inspires because it shines minority artists in the spotlight and showers aspiring artists with role models.
December 26, 2014
within the stories of queer & trans artists of color, these interviews touch on formal education or not, paying for art and artistic work, communal care and self-care, dis/ability. essential reading.
February 7, 2017
Taken from the hearts of some of the most inspiring demographic. Entrancing with its vulnerability, empowering with its diversity.
September 9, 2023
One of my favorites I’ve read this year. In this collection Queer and Trans Artists of Color: Stories of Some of Our Lives, Nia King, a queer mixed-race activist, artist, podcast-creator, interviews queer and trans people of color (mostly based in the Bay Area) about their journeys. And damn I feel humbled, inspired, hopeful, grateful. I feel
both angry at the harmful and violent white supremacist heteropatriarchical systems of oppression, while also feeling hopeful and empowered by those dedicated to collective liberation - which is true of all the folks in this book, making the brave choice to trust they can create and share art from their perspective, and who have found support in chosen family and community in doing so. The power and wisdom of the folks in this book! The vulnerability and realness!
Many of the artists do share about their experiences of oppression and trauma as queer/trans BIPOC folks, and I appreciate that the book allows space for the artists to share as much or as little about these aspects of their experience without *centering* trauma as the only or core part of their experiences and perspectives. Nia’s interviewing style is mindful, nonjudgmental, curious, and expansive, and I loved that there is an interview with Nia at the end! This collection also celebrates joy and community, while covering some real struggles the artists face, like being undocumented in the US, being a person of color in grad school/academia, the struggles and challenges between activists of different generations. The conversations around privilege and intersectionality are also very insightful. So much wisdom in this book about making the brave, scary, and vulnerable choice to create art in a world that tells you it’s not worthwhile or these perspectives don’t matter. They do matter, so damn much, and they’re so damn beautiful.
Excited to read volumes 2 and 3! With much much gratitude <3
both angry at the harmful and violent white supremacist heteropatriarchical systems of oppression, while also feeling hopeful and empowered by those dedicated to collective liberation - which is true of all the folks in this book, making the brave choice to trust they can create and share art from their perspective, and who have found support in chosen family and community in doing so. The power and wisdom of the folks in this book! The vulnerability and realness!
Many of the artists do share about their experiences of oppression and trauma as queer/trans BIPOC folks, and I appreciate that the book allows space for the artists to share as much or as little about these aspects of their experience without *centering* trauma as the only or core part of their experiences and perspectives. Nia’s interviewing style is mindful, nonjudgmental, curious, and expansive, and I loved that there is an interview with Nia at the end! This collection also celebrates joy and community, while covering some real struggles the artists face, like being undocumented in the US, being a person of color in grad school/academia, the struggles and challenges between activists of different generations. The conversations around privilege and intersectionality are also very insightful. So much wisdom in this book about making the brave, scary, and vulnerable choice to create art in a world that tells you it’s not worthwhile or these perspectives don’t matter. They do matter, so damn much, and they’re so damn beautiful.
Excited to read volumes 2 and 3! With much much gratitude <3
July 11, 2018
I found the book a challenging read for a couple of reasons. The facilitator for the Diversity Book Club helped with one of them by posting links and articles showing some of the contributors’ work. I had never heard of them; queers in theatre, film, and literature, as well as friends, are all I’ve known. The second issue was that these artists exist in primarily insular communities in LA, NYC, or the Bay Area. Their presence and activism, even with the Internet, is local geographically as well as within their groups (queer, trans, POC, etc). I looked for connections, commonalities and it was a struggle. I learned, but not as much as I was searching for.
September 26, 2020
READ THIS BOOK or listen to the podcast! I personally have a hard time reading transcripts and it took me a while to read through it. However, the information and discussions from the interviews were eye opening and made me think.
Art, how we define it and what price as artists and consumers should pay for it.
Privilege in the form of race, body type (never thought of this one), gender presentation, and sexual identity.
The is so much wonderful information. At the end of the book there is a list of all the artists and their websites, business, etc so you can go and support these amazing folks!
Art, how we define it and what price as artists and consumers should pay for it.
Privilege in the form of race, body type (never thought of this one), gender presentation, and sexual identity.
The is so much wonderful information. At the end of the book there is a list of all the artists and their websites, business, etc so you can go and support these amazing folks!
April 8, 2019
I thought I wouldnt like an interview style book but this book was super interesting and really expanded upon some ideas within activist communities that are often difficult to discuss. Also, it was an informative piece on the vast experience and ideas of a group of people that so often gets stereotyped and marginalized into one story.
June 4, 2018
This book was so enticing that I read it in one sitting! King made the interviews gripping and interesting and asked questions that really pulled at my heart. It was so incredible to be able to connect with the artists through the pages of a book!
December 10, 2018
As someone who normally finds interviews pretty difficult to read, I was surprised at how smoothly this book read. It's an interesting selection of interviews from a variety of people who identify as QTPOC and who work as artists - in a variety of different media.
March 25, 2020
I received this book as a graduation gift. I was pretty surprised that they gave me this book, because we had never talked about art or queerness. But here we are.
My favorite themes are 1) generational “differences,” 2) art and community organizing, and 3) community care and self care. I got pretty bored when they kept talking about academia and getting money for your art.
My favorite themes are 1) generational “differences,” 2) art and community organizing, and 3) community care and self care. I got pretty bored when they kept talking about academia and getting money for your art.
November 19, 2024
a collection of interviews - I enjoyed many of them although interviews are not my favorite format to read. I did love the variety of artists. It was a bit dated - I wondered how some of the questions might have been different post pandemic
August 11, 2017
So good
January 4, 2018
LOVED this book of interviews with QTPOC artist activists - many that have been heroes to me for years. So much great stuff to dig into in this time of resistance.
February 11, 2018
Thoughtfully edited, meticulously put together, interesting, funny, sweet, sad. Everyone should read this!
August 19, 2019
I read this book when I was a senior in high school and it quite literally changed my life. I go back to it often for inspiration and hope. I would recommend this book to anyone.
July 19, 2020
lots of really great discussions happening in this that are still relevant 7 years later! also a great introduction to artists I would have never heard of otherwise. it did kinda make me chuckle how many artists talked about their tumblrs now that tumblr is a shell of the site it used to be and most artists have fled from it, as well as talking about "call-out culture", an earlier form of "cancel culture". some parts felt a little tedious because it feels like these things have been talked to death by now, but a lot of that was just beginning when this book was written.
February 1, 2021
Accessible and relevant in a way that more professional publications such as Trap Door are not.
May 6, 2015
Through her podcast “We Want the Airwaves,” Nia King documents artists who identify as QTPOC (queer and trans people of color) and are committed to art as a tool for political change. Queer and Trans Artists of Color: Stories of Some of Our Lives collects 16 interviews from the podcast to highlight in print. The anthology covers quite a bit of territory without losing both the specificity of each collaborator’s tale or the larger picture of the realities of QTPOC community members. The stories capture a diverse range of voices such as performers Miss Persia and Daddie$ Pla$tik, performer and organizer Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, and authors Ryka Aoki and Janet Mock.
The thoughtfulness in the presentation of these artists’ interviews is quite apparent throughout the text. Each artist had the opportunity to represent their words and themselves as they see fit—spelling requests, pronoun usage, and self-labeling utilized within the pages. This is not a small feat or something to overlook, as those of us who are marginalized artists know all to well. Just as Toi Scott recognized in the Foreword:
King's work does everything it can to show clearly, without assumptions, and without omission these artists’ stories. Readers who are familiar with LBGTQ+ or QTPOC community activism will recognize the common elements of ostracizing and abuse that as youth these artist experience. Activists and artists will recognize the struggle of acquiring funding and resources for projects as well as just flat out paying the rent each month that features in many interviews. Marginalized folks will appreciate the discussions on how invasive dealing with the public, corporate employees, legal/federal representatives, and medical authorities can be as well as the strategies for making it through those evils in one piece. Necessary discussions of self-care, realistic body/health/mental expectations, and support systems appear often. The collection is a great resource for instructors, folks who work in the arts, activists, and QTPOC artists looking for connections to other artists out there hustling toward the revolution.
The thoughtfulness in the presentation of these artists’ interviews is quite apparent throughout the text. Each artist had the opportunity to represent their words and themselves as they see fit—spelling requests, pronoun usage, and self-labeling utilized within the pages. This is not a small feat or something to overlook, as those of us who are marginalized artists know all to well. Just as Toi Scott recognized in the Foreword:
So often in the media, others tell our stories from their perspectives, taking liberties and making assumptions and omissions, many times without our knowledge or consent…For queer and trans people of color, art isn’t frivolous upper-class entertainment. Our writing, performances, and visual art are in keeping with the tradition of our predecessors who used stories to share knowledge, heal trauma, and envision liberation.
King's work does everything it can to show clearly, without assumptions, and without omission these artists’ stories. Readers who are familiar with LBGTQ+ or QTPOC community activism will recognize the common elements of ostracizing and abuse that as youth these artist experience. Activists and artists will recognize the struggle of acquiring funding and resources for projects as well as just flat out paying the rent each month that features in many interviews. Marginalized folks will appreciate the discussions on how invasive dealing with the public, corporate employees, legal/federal representatives, and medical authorities can be as well as the strategies for making it through those evils in one piece. Necessary discussions of self-care, realistic body/health/mental expectations, and support systems appear often. The collection is a great resource for instructors, folks who work in the arts, activists, and QTPOC artists looking for connections to other artists out there hustling toward the revolution.
July 31, 2016
Nia King's Queer and Trans Artists of Color: Stories of Some of Our Lives reveals the myriad nuanced real life first person accounts of real Artists and people who are Trans and Queer. Leave your stereotypes and media tropes about Queer and Trans People of Color people behind —and enter the three dimensional world actual people and Artists share about themselves and their Art of living. The reader will learn how Trans and Queer Artists of Color are and have been leading the civil rights revolution from the front. This book will go down as an instant classic! Please read this book before you make another mind-numbing statement to the media claiming you "know something important about Queer and Trans people of Color". Put down your oversized megaphone and speaking position, and take the time to READ about actual people who are Artists, Trans and Queer, and of color. Learn from the people in the trans and queer movement that are already using Art for personal and collective progress and who are leading the way. Artists of color. You will meet people in this book who will show you how to survive, and how to make a difference day-to-day. THEN put your newfound knowledge about Queer and Trans people as Artists to good use helping the folks already working to set us all free, with your access. A book which does the emotional heavy lifting. Donate to Nia King so they will produce more of this kind of work! Hearing from people themselves about who they are is so important, especially in the time when non trans, heterosexual, cisgender white people are doing most of the defining in the media. Learn more than just the whitewashed corporate view of trans experience we are often fed in the media. If you are going to write a single sentence on Queer and Trans People of Color, do us all a favor, and read this book first!
January 18, 2016
A fantastic series of interviews, this book is a stellar read for artists and academics.
Each essay is a transcript of an interview that lead-editor Nia King conducted for her podcast series with different queer and/or trans artists of color, and the selections have been curated masterfully. While certain themes continually appear throughout the book (the prevailing white supremacy of academia, the importance of making the transition to paid artist, etc.), each interview subject gives their own unique spin on the issues. Nia also skillfully conducts each interview, making the speaker feel comfortable divulging stories of their art life and experiences, including in many cases, several delightful tangents and anecdotes that serve to illustrate the themes of the collection.
Because each chapter is a different transcript, this also makes the book a very easy read, which is meant entirely as a compliment. The transcripts, by nature, take on a conversational tone, and as someone used to reading screenplays, any instance of, essentially, dialog simply reads faster for me. I was able to absorb and underline with exceptional clarity the entire way through book.
Many of the stories are powerful, and while I did not want to put the book down, I found myself needing a break after certain chapters simply because of the passionate subject matter. I would definitely recommend this book to other minority artists, as well as anyone who wants a better grasp on the experiences of QTPOCs who are striving to make their art seen and their voices heard.
Each essay is a transcript of an interview that lead-editor Nia King conducted for her podcast series with different queer and/or trans artists of color, and the selections have been curated masterfully. While certain themes continually appear throughout the book (the prevailing white supremacy of academia, the importance of making the transition to paid artist, etc.), each interview subject gives their own unique spin on the issues. Nia also skillfully conducts each interview, making the speaker feel comfortable divulging stories of their art life and experiences, including in many cases, several delightful tangents and anecdotes that serve to illustrate the themes of the collection.
Because each chapter is a different transcript, this also makes the book a very easy read, which is meant entirely as a compliment. The transcripts, by nature, take on a conversational tone, and as someone used to reading screenplays, any instance of, essentially, dialog simply reads faster for me. I was able to absorb and underline with exceptional clarity the entire way through book.
Many of the stories are powerful, and while I did not want to put the book down, I found myself needing a break after certain chapters simply because of the passionate subject matter. I would definitely recommend this book to other minority artists, as well as anyone who wants a better grasp on the experiences of QTPOCs who are striving to make their art seen and their voices heard.
August 7, 2016
This collection is vitally important. There's so much wisdom here and so much advice for other artists. I appreciate Nia's attention to behind-the-scenes stuff like paying transcribers to create access and running edited transcripts by interviewees for approval.
This book took me a long time to read because there was so much wonderful stuff to take it, and I quoted from it extensively in my journal.
I particularly love the interviews with Ryka Aoki, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, and Lovemme "Love" Corazón. Ryka Aoki discusses the value of an MFA in terms that helped me think through getting one for myself, as well as channeling fear and the politics of mixed-genre writing. Leah talks beautifully about community and politicized art spaces. I love seeing their connections with other artists through quotes and discussion of her mentor. Love Corazón has great insights about multi-genre writing, communal care, and leaving evidence.
I love this collection and I can't wait for the second book of interviews.
This book took me a long time to read because there was so much wonderful stuff to take it, and I quoted from it extensively in my journal.
I particularly love the interviews with Ryka Aoki, Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha, and Lovemme "Love" Corazón. Ryka Aoki discusses the value of an MFA in terms that helped me think through getting one for myself, as well as channeling fear and the politics of mixed-genre writing. Leah talks beautifully about community and politicized art spaces. I love seeing their connections with other artists through quotes and discussion of her mentor. Love Corazón has great insights about multi-genre writing, communal care, and leaving evidence.
I love this collection and I can't wait for the second book of interviews.
September 5, 2016
A collection of interviews between Nia King and a range of different folks who fall under the QTPOC umbrella. There are discussions of art, of politics, childhoods both good and bad, abuse and recovery, creation and criticism. Each encounter feels like a snippet of a longer conversation - I'm not sure if that's accurate to how the interviews were transcribed or edited, but for a few interviewees I wasn't sure what exactly they did until it came up halfway through their segment. (Not that that's a bad thing necessarily.) As a project, and as a glimpse into the lives of people with such widely different life experiences, this book is really important, and I was engrossed. And I have a lot of names, books and artworks to look out for in future!
August 29, 2016
I really appreciated the different perspectives advice, and strategies of everyone included in this collection. At times I felt strong resonance with some of the experience shared, while at others felt awakened to other's perspectives. This was a treasure. I'm so thankful for Nia for putting this all together.
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