How A Drag Artist and portrait Photographer Are Supporting Gaza

READ: 4 MIN. VIDEO 1.5 mins

WORDS + PHOTOS: MATT FORD

Drag artist: Virgin x

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WITH THE WORLD'S ATTENTION NOW LOCKED ON IRAN AND DONALD TRUMP'S FICKLE TRIGGER FINGER, THE SUFFERING IN GAZA HAS BEEN PUSHED DOWN THE PECKING ORDER. THE MEDIA HAS MOVED ON. MUCH OF THE PUBLIC HAS FOLLOWED. BUT DRAG ARTIST AND LONG-TIME COLLABORATOR OF MINE, VIRGIN X, HASN'T.

WATCH THE FILM. 1.5 MINS

Virgin's activism is neither performative nor recent. They began by reaching out directly to Palestinians in Gaza on Instagram, learning their stories, then mobilising their followers to donate directly to individual campaigns. To date they've raised tens of thousands of pounds for Palestinian individuals and families. Real money. Real people.

“Any pushback I've received for supporting Gaza as a queer performer is irrelevant.

I am a queer artist who believes in freedom for everyone, so I am both an advocate and an ally to all oppressed and marginalised people in the world.”

Virgin x

Virgin has the platform and the audience. I have six years of portraits. Fine art work, promo shoots, stills from our music video. It made sense to put them together. I've curated five photographic prints and four Polaroid Lab editions, now available as the Virgin X Print Collection, raising funds for ALL OUR RELATIONS. A CHARITY WORKING WITH FAMILIES ACROSS GAZA.

The images sit where a lot of my work does, somewhere between portraiture, fashion and fine art. Prints are available in A5 and A1 on museum-quality paper, from £100 to £500. Every piece is signed, dated and numbered by me.

Follow Virgin x on instagram.