Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Emmy Tran. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Emmy thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you recount a story of an unexpected problem you’ve faced along the way?

Censorship is a problem I face often with the content of my artwork. I create paintings that highlight queerness and liberation for marginalized communities, both of which are considered “political” even though they are simply my identity and lived experiences or the existence of the closest people in my life. My erotic pieces portraying sapphic intimacy and queer bodies regularly get removed by social media and rejected by many art shows for violating “community guidelines,” even though hetero sex and male bodies have been on display in the visual art world for centuries.

Recently, I exhibited at Artist Project for the first time, which was a major opportunity and a long-time goal of mine as I had been supporting the show as a patron for many years. After my application got approved, the organizers suggested I show the erotic works in a “less prominent” space, so I built the Sapphic Shower and put a curtain in front of the paintings.

On the second day of the show, two people from Artist Project approached me to take me to a private room, and asked that I remove one of my paintings due to a patron’s report. It was not an erotic piece, but a painting of a still from a film, featuring a black woman and a quote that reads, “All oppressed people have a right to violence.” They mentioned that “due to the current political climate, the work can cause intense reactions at the booth,” and that “our patrons do not go to our show expecting to see this.” I was heartbroken to take the piece down, and felt silenced as a queer racialized artist, that my voice did not matter as much as the complaint of one patron.

As artists, our role is to challenge existing perspectives, invoke feelings, and record history and culture. Art is meant to move viewers and confront their beliefs. If we let the big feelings scare us away from authentic artistic expression, all we are left with is sanitized and artificial comfort.

Emmy, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a self-taught visual artist based in Toronto. My art is a response to my lived experiences, centering community, collective liberation, and my queer identity. I specialize in acrylic paint. My signature style explores bold intense splashes of everyday feelings and sociopolitical issues using vibrant colours and text commentary.

I have exhibited across Canada, at galleries, street festivals, art markets, and Prides! I dedicate my work to elevating voices that are often missing in visual arts and use my platform to fill in representation gaps for my 2SLGBTQIA+ and BIPOC communities.

My “radical belief” is that art is for everyone, and it is a tool for truth. I host art classes where anyone can become their own muse and paint their own nude as a love letter to the queer, trans bodies that I never got to see in galleries and museums. I paint about the collective yearning for decolonization and freedom and dignity for all people. I explore the vulnerability of being alive when the world seems so grim and tumultuous, yet love, hope and care permeates everyday life.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding aspect of being an artist is the ability to cultivate reality from your imagination. Having the means to transform ideas into physical creations and to build communities based on your own sense of wonder and hope is an incredible power that I don’t take lightly.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The mission is to always increase the quotient of good in the world. And my goal is to collaborate with more revolutionary artists and to create more spaces for everyone to explore art and creativity. for themselves. Art should be accessible to everybody, regardless of skill level, age or socioeconomic status.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://emmytran.bigcartel.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emmytran/

Image Credits

Julie Riemersma (for the headshot)