Artist Jaime Hayde Illustrates the Happiness of Gay Love

Author: Alex Cooper

These illustrations come from Jaime Hayde, an artist based in Northern Spain. Hayde’s work focuses on sharing diversity with the world — from diverse bodies to diverse love. You can find out more about the artist and see more of his work here.

From the artist:

“Within my practice, I aim to translate my feelings into my drawings. These drawings have helped me to find myself and feel more confident with what I think and feel. I grew up without any diverse references, and still remember when I found the first ‘gay illustration’ in my first year of university. This meant a lot to me because I felt for the first time it was talking to me. 

“Through my illustrations, I try to give voice to a love that is often silenced, my illustrations are about love towards others, but above all, towards oneself. In 2019 I started a new life after a huge personal crisis – I needed to reconnect with who I was, and I did it. I had some body issues (some of which I’m still working through) and realized that I was only drawing super-built men. This is fine but doesn’t represent me. So I decided to explore and expose some of my insecurities on my drawings, big men, hairy, sensitive, and not necessarily white. I’m a half-black man who has grown up in a white society without contact to my roots so this topic is important for me. I started using ‘fantasy colors’ as skin tones because I thought that everyone is different and those colors are not related to a particular group. My illustrations are a good way to heal some injuries from the past, a kind of therapy. It’s amazing when you get messages from people telling you that your work matters to them.”

(Statement from artist continues below.)

Original Article on The Advocate
Author: Alex Cooper