Eric Hart Jr.
Artists
Eric Hart Jr.
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Eric Hart Jr.’s sumptuous black-and-white photo book, When I Think About Power, presents over 70 portraits exploring the notion of power as it relates to the Black queer experience. It’s one of this year’s must-have books.
At age 23, Hart is driven by the mission of Black and queer freedom to create work that “has a very intentional focus on uplifting those who look and love like myself,” he says. “Through themes of power and performance, my work allows me room to figure out not only who I am in this world, but what my voice has to offer this world.”
Through his photography, Hart wants to send the message that LGBTQ+ folks are worthy of love, joy, and an authentic life. His striking photographs explore masculinity, queerness, and the body to celebrate Black men in all their complexity and layers. These portraits allow other Black queer men to see themselves reflected and empowered.
Hart is currently completing a 10-month studio fellowship and is working on expanding to editorial work — and hopefully, his first magazine cover. “I also write…a lot,” he shares, “so between photography, poetry, and screenwriting, ‘next’ could be a wide array of things. Just stay tuned.”
“Our voices are worthy of being heard as they matter just as much as anyone else’s in this world,” he says. “We are a powerful people, and we have to know our worth. It may be challenging, as the world may not always choose to see us, and we may not even see ourselves at times. We may stumble, but we are worthy of getting right back up.” @erichartjr
Artists
Troye Sivan
Meet one of the artists, disruptors, educators, groundbreakers, innovators, and storytellers who all helped make the world a better place for LGBTQ+ people.
Photo by Stuart Winecoff
It’s been five years since Troye Sivan’s second studio album, Bloom, was released to much acclaim. And Something to Give Each Other, which came out this October, was well worth the wait.
Sivan and his art routinely spark conversation in pop and LGBTQ+ culture. “Rush,” the album’s lead single that dropped in July, is no exception. It became (along with Kylie Minogue’s “Padam Padam”) the queer song of the summer. The steamy music video, an explosion of dancing, abs, and hedonism, unleashed its own rush of think pieces about popper use and body diversity in queer spaces.
Sivan, who as an actor had a role this year on The Idol — Max’s much-skewered scripted show on pop stardom— also made headlines for his candor this year. He revealed on the High Low podcast that, despite the reputation he received from 2018’s “Bloom,” which was widely received as a bottom anthem, he is, in fact, not a “power bottom.”
Whatever his preferences, Sivan has proven himself a versatile artist. The release of Something to Give Each Other was Troye’s proudest accomplishment of 2023 — along with the launch of Tsu Lange Yor. The Australian lifestyle and homeware brand, for which Sivan serves as creative director, sells candles and scents as well as home objects. “My brother and I started it together, had to trust our guts, find incredible people to work with, and have learnt so much along the way,” the 28-year-old says.
In art and in life, Sivan remains inspired by his community. “Through so much adversity, the LGBTQ+ community pushes to be a safe space for all — pulled together by pillars of love, support, chosen family, and freedom,” he says. “Queer people everywhere need to be protected and be able to celebrate themselves as loudly as they want.” @troyesivan