LONDON, UK — As part of its ongoing support and work in the queer community SKITTLES® has once again joined forces with GAY TIMES, Queer Britain and Getty Images to launch a brand-new exhibition called “Queer Joy,” alongside OOH at key Pride events and social activity across GAY TIMES.
Following a preview at Liverpool’s iconic Royal Albert Dock in May, the group have launched the QUEER JOY open-air exhibition at The Outside Art Project, which has turned the King’s Cross neighborhood into one of the largest outdoor gallery spaces in London.
Exploring the concept of “Queer Joy,” defined as the deep happiness that brings warmth and purpose to queer lives, the exhibition will showcase 50 striking portraits of queer people, captured by emerging LGBTQ+ photographers from the UK and abroad. The free exhibition, which runs from June 01 to August 31, aims to shine a light on the unfiltered, queer self-expression that is vital to the LGBTQ+ community.
The OOH will be live across London, Brighton and Manchester Pride events through adbikes, digivans and digital screens.
The project follows on of a multi-year campaign that set out to fill gaps in the LGBTQ+ archive, as images were often omitted, erased or non-existent, leaving an LGBTQ+ shaped hole in narratives about the past. The exhibition is designed to ensure the archives of tomorrow are as diverse, representative and inclusive as they should be.
As a long-standing supporter of Pride, for more than half a decade SKITTLES® have given up the Rainbow colors in order for Pride’s rainbow to take Center stage, acknowledging that there is only one rainbow which deserves to be seen in June.
In 2021, this work evolved with the launch of Skittles® “Recolor The Rainbow” campaign, in partnership with Gay Times, Switchboard, Queer Britain and Getty Images which saw the group recolor four iconic LGBTQ+ images – restoring them to full color for the first time ever. Working with renowned colorists Dynamichrome and adam&eveDDB, the recolored images brought new life, visibility, and celebration to each image.
Moving forward to 2022, Skittles® worked with Gay Times, Getty Images and Queer Britain, to call on the queer community and allies to submit their own photos from Pride’s 50-year history. The work was a continuation of the “Recolor The Rainbow” campaign and efforts to help fill the gaps in the UK’s LGBTQ+ photography archive. The group also launched a nationwide search for emerging LGBTQ+ photographers to help diversify archives and photography collections by documenting the vibrancy and dynamism of the today’s LGBTQ+ community – with bursary’s granted to the selected photographers to help inspire and further their future careers.
Ryan Pardo-Roques, Senior Brand Manager at SKITTLES® said, “Skittles® have been on a journey with our work and allyship of the LGBTQ+ community for almost a decade. The impact and growth of this activity would not have been possible without our amazing partners whose counsel and insight into the community has helped us remain authentic and use our brand platform for good and action. As we enter Pride month, we’re bound to see brands use this moment to speak to the LGBTQ+ community but it’s important to ensure this is backed by credible partnerships, action and extends all year round. Celebrating each other’s differences is at the core of the SKITTLES® brand and the values of Mars, we remain committed to celebrating diversity in all of its forms.”
Josh Fletcher, Executive Creative Director at GTX, GAYTIMES Group, said, “We are delighted to continue our close collaboration with Mars which has entered its fourth year. Our proximity to the brand over this time has allowed us to create a genuine partnership based on mutual trust and respect, yielding such impactful results with this campaign. See The Rainbow has been developed closely with the various partners involved in the project, creating new opportunities for emerging creatives while solving a genuine community issue. Skittles is uniquely placed to spread a message of positivity and joy during a difficult time of the LGBTQ+ community so it’s incredible to See The Rainbow in such various ways that truly represent the multi faced people within our community.”
The group will continue to work with the 10 emerging LGBTQ+ photographers, identified through the nation-wide search in 2022, to try and capture all identities in 1000+ images, to help tackle stereotypes in media and better represent the vibrant and dynamic LGBTQ+ community within the UK.
The photographers will be attending key moments and events across the year to capture Queer Joy and experiences, with some of their images included in the exhibition. Through these images, the exhibition aims to shine a light on the unfiltered, queer self-expression that is vital to the LGBTQ+ community and highlight the feeling of Queer Joy.
Skittles® will also continue being a supporting partner of GAY TIMES Honours, a role the brand has held for the past two years, hosted in late 2023.
