Jenifer Prince is a visual artist and illustrator from Brazil. She combines mid-century comic aesthetics and pop culture references to depict lesbianism, “their love, life, sexuality and everything in between,” with a nostalgic nod to the past.
We love to see Jenifer Prince’s art and so do big clients, including Netflix, Amazon Prime and Penguin Random House. We asked Jenifer what she perceives to be the appeal of vintage-inspired lesbian art in 2022.
“I think the appeal of this aesthetic is similar to the appeal of period lesbian films,” she said. “In addition to the feeling of nostalgia, they give us this positive sensation, even if unconscious, that lesbians and sapphic women have always existed, [acting] almost as validation of our existence in historical periods when that was denied to us.
“These works are a way of representing and reflecting on the stories that are waiting to be told. Or even the stories that could have happened if social paradigms were different at that time. That’s why I love seeing old gay photographs: they hold a powerful, beautiful statement!”
We asked Jenifer’s take on the idea that vintage-inspired lesbian art is a matter of activism. Does vintage-inspired lesbian art battle the homophobic notion that lesbianism is “new,” through the aesthetic’s nostalgic association with history?
“Absolutely!,” she responded. “It’s a way of subverting what we have been led to believe about the existence of lesbianism, as you have pointed out. It challenges society’s expectations for those women, hence the “they were really good friends” joke that ironizes the way historians treat lesbian and sapphic relationships throughout history.
“I remember, for example, hearing at school that male homosexuality was common in ancient Greece, while female homosexuality was never even mentioned. I learned about Sappho much later. In that sense, vintage-inspired lesbian art is undoubtedly a matter of activism.”
Making art about lesbian love with a vintage-inspired aesthetic combats our erasure in history. Jenifer Prince’s art draws on the audience’s associations with the past while disrupting society’s heteronormative perception of it.
“This is one of my biggest motivations for emulating the vintage style. It’s happened a few times that people come to me and ask me which comic or which book that illustration was from, as if it was a panel of an old comic taken out of context.
“That’s part of my intention with this style. I want to visually assert that lesbians have always existed and consequently help to fill in the gaps of our existence in history in a positive, often wholesome way.”
As for which lesbians inspire Jenifer, it varies. The lesbian experience itself is what motivates the artist.
“I don’t think there are specific characteristics in characters or historical personas that inspire me. I’m inspired by the lesbian experience as a whole, by the way in which this perspective brings an experience that can take place in different ways, but all through what we have in common, which is to love women.
“I love, for example, discovering and learning more about how Emily Dickinson explored her love for Sue in her poetry. There’s a certain subversiveness in her poetry that I think is beautiful; this natural, unapologetic way she writes to Sue about her feelings. But, at the same time, it’s so subversive that they had to literally sabotage her poetry to hide this love in a ridiculous attempt to erase it from history.
“Catherine Opie is also an inspiration for me. Her work is wonderful. I especially like “Domestic,” where she travelled around the US and photographed lesbian households in the late 90s…You see a subtle overlap of ordinariness and otherness.
“I believe this diverse representation of the lesbian experience is a huge source of inspiration for me and my work.”
