“Honed”

Lily Cortes

Digital Illustration

Since before the beginning of the pandemic, I had been quietly pondering my place in the LGBTQ+ community. I hoped that exploring the topic in my art would give me some new insight. The language of flowers is the foundation of the composition while the comic format allows for the exploration of the resilience of the LGBTQ+ community through narrative. The character’s main colors reference lavender and violets, which have been continuously linked to LGBTQ+ dating back to the lyrics of the Greek poet Sappho. She is gifted a wolf’s bane, a poisonous plant used only as a warning for danger. Instead of succumbing to the person’s hate, she plants the flowers and they grow into a gladiolus, signifying her strength and courage.

Mentored by: Neil C Jones