FLAVIA D´URSO
Founder and Designer, Queer By Design
The rainbow is an instantly recognizable symbol of the LGBT community—but it doesn´t have to be the only one. Flavia D´Urso, founder and artist behind Queer by Design, is dedicated to creating new iconography to symbolize the diversity of our community. The bold ″Q″ logo she created appears on unisex t-shirts and tanks, available for sale on her website. ″What prompted me to design the logo for the term ´queer,´ and subsequently start Queer by Design, was when I realized, ´Wow, if there is no visual language for such an abstract and changing term, how can we expect people to grasp what it means today´?″ D´Urso´s business grew out of the frustration she felt with standard images of contemporary queerness, and she is motivated to transform the once-derogatory term into something ″refined, positive and inclusive.″ ″For me, [the word] queer is so welcoming and contemporary, and my goal is to help people, in a visual way, see that new and positive ´queer´ instead of remaining hung up on its previous connotations,″ says D´Urso, who received a combined BS/BA degree in art and psychology from Skidmore College. ″I think if we can make progress to accept ´queer,´ it will also help bring the LGBT community together in a new way.″
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