Alexus Adkins

I’m born and raised Oregonian, having grown up in Portland, and raised by a trans dad and a queer mom, I grew up surrounded by those who did not fit into a box or wanted to express themselves differently than they were told was acceptable. As a result of that free thinking atmosphere, I’ve been a creative for my whole life. My childhood was spent adoring artists' work, from books to illustrations or animations, to the movies I’d watch so often my parents had to take away the DVDs from me just out of sheer annoyance. Occasionally these hours spent daydreaming would explode through any medium I could get my hands on. Glitter and swirling saturated colors made from dollar store paints or Crayola markers helped me create my inner world far before words could; in fact, I think words have always fallen short on me whenever I’ve tried to wrap them around my head, like rope trying to tie down a cloud. Art gave me a space to understand myself. The play and wonder of art gave me an escape from my constant anxious thought storm and mental rigidity that I was seemingly just born with.