Local event celebrates LGBTQ+ Pride Month

By Zoey Hyde

The month of June is nationally recognized as LGBTQ+ Pride Month. With this comes many celebrations of queer identities, individuality, self expression and more.

The Left Bank Art Gallery in McGregor held a celebratory event on June 7. The Pride in Art event highlighted numerous artists, the connection between art and identity, and invited the public to view pieces, speak with artists and celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month.

The LGBTQ+ artists and community members who showcased their art included Jay Petsche, Eric Kepler, Christina Huguez, Andrew Burlage, Blair McLees, Chris Childers and Jayden Snyder. All had unique work on display, and while sometimes their art had similar themes, it was showcased in different ways. Works from glass mosaics, mixed media, oil paintings and more were on display. 

One artist who attended the gallery was Jay Petsche, a new artist living in Des Moines. Pride in Art was Petsche’s first time showcasing his art, where he had four pieces on display and for sale. Petsche doesn’t publicize his art on social media, so this was the first time a wide array of people were viewing it.

He communicated the feeling as though, “if it’s not perfect, it’s not worth it,” with his art, which is a leading factor in why he doesn’t showcase his work. But Petsche also displayed feelings of gratitude and reward from others viewing his paintings, stating, “The fact that people are seeing it and liking it…it’s super rewarding.” 

Petsche is a relatively new artist, in a sense, as he’s only been creating paintings and similar works for a matter of months. For him, art became a creative outlet to help many aspects of his life. Petsche talked about how he moved from working as a hairstylist to a corporate setting. He explained that what he created as a hairstylist was his art, but when he switched to working in corporate, his therapist pushed him to find something “to get away.” 

He found this new form of art could benefit his mental health and help him heal from past experiences. He stated, “I was able to just lose myself, not overthink things and get distracted by everything we’re going through in this day and age.” 

Petsche also explained how art changed his mental health and his view on the world, saying, “I could look at a building and I wouldn’t necessarily see a building. I’d see a specific square of color I want to use.”

Petsche uses different mediums, but most often oil paint, to create his art work, although this is not where his journey began. He used charcoal, oil pastels, acrylic paint and more before discovering his “preferred usage.” He explained that he liked color a lot with his background in hair, but a lot of media couldn’t accommodate his tendency to get distracted or come back to his art at a later time. That was until he found oil paint and fell in love with the ability to come back to his paintings, not having to worry about the speed he must complete it, and more. 

For many artists, their artwork is connected to their identity. Petsche feels “it’s getting there” in that aspect. He thinks his pieces connect more to moments in his life or self expression rather than those aspects as a whole. But Petsche does feel art has changed him as a person, and his identity. Whether it was his background in hair, or how he’s using art now, he explained, “I used to be very shy. I wouldn’t talk to anyone and I definitely feel that, when you have something people like, it makes a huge difference.”

Finally, Petsche explained what Pride means to him. He said, “To me, Pride is a celebration of living and just being who the heck you want to be in a very difficult world.” 

He also communicated that it’s important for him to be involved in the LGBTQ+ community because, like many others, he feels he went a long time looking for a role model in the community. He realized that “maybe I am that person,” and if he accepts himself, others will be more likely to. 

Another artist whose work was showcased in Pride in Art was Andrew Burlage from Cedar Rapids. He started creating when he was young, around high school age. He explained that he started doing art after he watched “The Titanic” and wanted to draw it. He was encouraged by others during this time, which made him want to continue. 

Burlage does mixed media art. When explaining why he chooses mixed media work, he said, “You can always keep going. It kind of feels like counting to infinity almost.” 

He tried theater and acting in college, so he also took art classes throughout. But Burlage stated, “The thing I like about art is that you can spend 10 years on the painting and not finish it, but with performing, you have to do it right there on the spot.” 

He briefly took a break from art, but started again around the time of the pandemic. 

Burlage feels art plays a role in his self expression and identity. In one example, he said, “I feel like, when I’m drawing self portraits, I can feel their emotions and what got them to that state of mind in that portrait. So it’s like, oh, yeah, they do look happy but you’re staring at it for so long. You can see that they’re actually kind of sad.” 

Burlage also explained that art played a role in how he has developed as a person. He feels art has helped him feel in control in many situations, stating, “You might not be able to control what’s going on on the outside, but you can control what’s going on within this canvas or piece of paper.” 

Art helps him create his own world and he even uses it as meditation. 

Burlage spoke about how he feels art has played a role in LGBTQ+ culture, saying, “I think it’s a way for you to freely express yourself and not wear a mask.” 

For Burlage, Pride is a symbol of confidence and resilience, and he thinks LGBTQ+ events are important because “many people might not know it, but [LGBTQ people] are all around us. This gives them the opportunity or room to safely express themselves, and show people that they’re worth something.”

The inaugural Pride in Art event was a success for The Left Bank. The event attracted many guests and gave LGBTQ+ people a place to gather and show their Pride. Most of the artists’ work that was a part of the exhibit opening will be displayed and for sale the rest of this month.

The month of June is nationally recognized as LGBTQ+ Pride Month. With this comes many celebrations of queer identities, individuality, self expression and more. 

The Left Bank Art Gallery in McGregor held a celebratory event on June 7. The Pride in Art event highlighted numerous artists, the connection between art and identity, and invited the public to view pieces, speak with artists and celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month.

The LGBTQ+ artists and community members who showcased their art included Jay Petsche, Eric Kepler, Christina Huguez, Andrew Burlage, Blair McLees, Chris Childers and Jayden Snyder. All had unique work on display, and while sometimes their art had similar themes, it was showcased in different ways. Works from glass mosaics, mixed media, oil paintings and more were on display. 

One artist who attended the gallery was Jay Petsche, a new artist living in Des Moines. Pride in Art was Petsche’s first time showcasing his art, where he had four pieces on display and for sale. Petsche doesn’t publicize his art on social media, so this was the first time a wide array of people were viewing it.

He communicated the feeling as though, “if it’s not perfect, it’s