Artist Statement
Bailey Lawlor is an Illustrator and Writer from the Appalachian region of East Tennessee. Their pronouns are They/Them and they have an obsessive desire to see more Queer and Neurodivergent characters in storytelling that don’t center around these aspects of their identity.
Their project, the first 21 pages to a Soft Horror Webcomic with complimenting Character Sheets and Merchandising, is titled “VIVERE.” Translated from Latin it means simply “To Live,” a sentiment that plays into Lawlor’s work and general outlook.
To Live implies a simple command or purpose, one thing above all else that a person or persons must do; and that is just-to be. To exist in whatever way best suits the individual, much like the act of escapism through storytelling allows a mind to wander in whatever direction it most pleases, temporarily uninhibited by outsider expectations.
This concept extends to the presence of Queer and Neurodivergent folks in storytelling media. Rather than making any grand or overt gestures, allowing them to just be/to exist within the narrative as any other person would be allowed to, uninhibited by the expectations of others.
