Wednesday Holmes is a Queer, Working class, Illustrator and Writer based in Brighton, UK. Their art practise explores multiple territories such as Queer & Trans Solidarity, Social Justice, Community Care and Mutual Aid, Radical Ecology and more. Wednesday’s more central interest is in how art is used as a tool of resistance and connection in community.
Wednesday initially started creating activist illustrations to educate and inform people about their experiences as a non binary butch lesbian. They created 100 artworks and zines in 100 days broaching topics such as ‘dispelling harmful myths about trans people’ ‘what to do when someone comes out to you’ ‘A little handbook for the parents of transgender children’, ’ what I’ve learned about life since getting top surgery’ and many more. Their work went viral multiple times, and the zines were read by millions of viewers globally.
Wednesday’s work gained mass visibility and as a result, they had the chance to connect with Queer community initiatives and organisers to help facilitate safe spaces for queer and trans people. Two pivotal examples are that of a campaign for the LGBT center New York to help encourage TGNCI people to come in and access support for substance use. The illustrations were shown around the center and on the New York subway, drawing community members in to seek support. This kickstarted Wednesday’s deep interest in how illustration can be used to connect queer people in times of need.
Since then, Wednesday has spent 7 years working with community initiatives to support their work. They have created art with ‘The Outside Project’, ‘Positive East’ , ‘Not a Phase’, ‘AKT’, ‘Voices4 Ldn’, ‘Voices4 Berlin’, ‘Star Recovery Programme’, ‘The Proud Trust’, ‘Voices4’, ‘Transsober’, ‘Operation Olive Branch’, ‘Pay it Back UK’, ‘The National Centre for Suicide Prevention’ and many more. Alongside their community centered work, they have created queer centred work for clients such as : ‘Gucci’ , ‘BBC’, ‘Tate London’, ‘The V& A’, ‘Adidas’, ‘Adobe’, ‘Squarespace’, ‘Dr Martens’, ‘Nickelodeon’ and many more.