Queer Joy Can Happen Here
Being Visible - audio and visual artworks that explore queer joy, identity and safety in Barking and Dagenham
Presented by artists Grace Duggan and Matty May, Being Visible has been produced by Studio 3 Arts for Be & Do, our project for Barking and Dagenham’s LGBTQIA+ community, to explore queer joy, identity and safety in Barking and Dagenham. Grace and Matty are co-writers for the pieces, collaborating with visual artist Hannah Dickens and sound artist Roly Botha.
Click here to read a transcript
Click here to read a transcript
The Being Visible artworks take the form of print posters with embedded QR codes displayed in public locations across Barking and Dagenham from 18 November 2021. The QR codes link to the audio soundscapes which you can listen to via the web players above.
“These pieces are a response to being queer in this borough. We both have varying relationships with our queer identities and this town. Although we adore the space, it hasn’t always felt safe or kind towards us. BEING VISIBLE is about reaching those who are not currently heard but also speaking openly about where this borough is currently in its LGBTQIA* safety.”
Gracy & Matty
Grace Duggan
Grace is a community artist and theatre director; their work often intersects with topics of class and LGBTQIA*. Grace has delivered workshops and collaborated with organisations such as Fuel Theatre, Studio 3 Arts, Young Vic Theatre, The North Wall, and The Royal Court. Grace directs the Junior Youth Theatre at Theatre Royal Stratford East, and works with community groups around the UK.
Matty May
Matty is a working-class queer artist who is Unashamedly common as muck, sometimes funny, and often anxious. Their work is honest, vulnerable, and a little uncomfortable. Matty’s debut solo show ‘If You Love Me This Might Hurt’, which explores mental health and suicide from a working class queer perspective, premiered at Camden Peoples Theatre in October 2021. They are the Associate Director of Scottee & Friends and have been lead artist on projects including ‘The Queer Wall’ and ‘Bleeps & Bloops’.
