American icons like Lady Liberty should all be more rainbow-rific.

It’s the US’s 250th anniversary and there’s a whole lot of red-white-and-blue-ing going on. But, chez Gwenn, the Semiquincentennial celebration is happening in a fuller range of colors, for Pride Month and beyond.

You can see the making of Rainbow Liberty in this video. Get prints and t-shirts with this design or purchase the original artwork for $800 plus shipping (and tax if you live in New Jersey). Respond to this email if you want to buy the painting!

#HappyPride moment: in this recent Northeast Times article about some public art I made in Philadelphia, the writer used “they” to refer to me. I always ask for “they” and the press only rarely gets it right. Every “they” is a joy!

More spice…

• Theo of Golden is a bad book. Allen Levi’s runaway hit was recommended to me about a bazillion times before I was finally able to get a hold of it through my library. When I did, I was annoyed with how much it annoyed me—so annoyed I wrote a whole review about why I think you should be annoyed too.

• The thing I never thought I’d say in public is now on my blog. It’s a turn of phrase I’ve been using with my partner for two decades now and I finally decided I’d say it on the Internet. It’s at the end of this post about why custom art is real art.

• Being pessimistic is good. And I have the free coloring page protest art to prove it.

• Sarah Maloney’s cartoons are the way cartoons should always be. This is one of my hotter takes because I am by no means an expert in comics, but I really love Maloney’s art.

My spiciest opinion is also the truest: art should always be free AND artists should always be paid.

I realize it might seem like that math won’t add up. I’ll even admit that it hasn’t always added up for me personally. But I stand by the statement.

Art is a necessity like clean air and water, food, shelter, health care, and human connection, because art is human connection made tangible.

I made this free duckling coloring page to give away at my Philadelphia public art event last month, and I’m making others to give away at the events on August 8th (at the Zoo) and September 12th (at Carpenters’ Hall). Part of why I can do this is because of all the lovely humans who donate every month through Patreon. Please consider becoming a supporter!

Take care,

Gwenn

Gwenn Seemel
39 N Union St
Lambertville, NJ 08530