Art of the Queer Diaspora

The Cultural Frontline

We meet artists of the queer diaspora: LGBTQ+ creatives living abroad, away from the cultures that raised them, to discuss ideas of personal and artistic freedom, exile and home and the meaning of the word ‘queer’ in 2022.

Arab film makers Sarah Kaskas, co-founder of Karaaj Films, and Mohammad Shawky Hassan discuss their new films, The Window, and Shall I Compare You to a Summer’s Day? with Tina Daheley. Mohammad Shawky Hassan recently appeared in London as part of the The SAFAR Film Festival of cinema from the Arab world.

British transgender writer Juno Roche discusses their candid memoir A Working Class Family Ages Badly and the idea of creativity in exile with Simon Richardson.

Nhojj, a singer and songwriter raised in Guyana and Trinidad and living in New York, explains how his sexuality informs his art.

And Hong Kong Chinese poet Mary Jean Chan explains the thinking behind the word ‘queer,’ used in the title of their latest co-edited poetry anthology 100 Queer Poems., as well as reading exclusive new work.

Produced by Simon Richardson

(Photo: Sophia Moussa Fitch and Tamara Saade in a still from The Window. Credit: Karaaj Films)