Jessi Ryan is asking for donations in support of their brand new project...

SKIN BRINGS NEW QUEER HISTORIES TO THE FORE, THROUGH AN IMMERSIVE VIDEO EXHIBITION & PERFORMANCE, CENTRING THE PERSONAL HISTORIES AND STORIES OF DIVERSE LGBTQIA+ COMMUNITY MEMBERS.

SKIN, is the second multimodal arts project from writer, activist and performer Jessi Ryan. To be presented across both an exhibition and performance- it is a continuation of the highly successful project QRAVE- which was presented in January 2025. SKIN has been programmed and is to be presented as part of Midsumma Presents 2026, it explores themes of “pride” “permanence” and “power” and will uncover powerful personal histories of individuals with strong ties to the City Of Yarra area. Through an immersive video presentation SKIN: THE EXHIBITION works with the stories of 6 unique community members. To be performed in 8 inch pleaser, SKIN: THE PERFORMANCE sees Jessi Ryan dives into the cartographic language of collective queer bodies in this blistering performance art ritual climaxing in a live tattooing amid the haze and lasers. "Ryan is a dynamic, evocative and engaging performer "****- ArtsHub

This project is so important, it provides crucial representation for an under represented cohort within broader society- particularly here in Melbourne at a time when homophobic attacks have seen a dramatic increase in regularity. The legacy of this project includes 30-35 minutes of video and 20-25 minutes of recorded interviews- which will be donated to Australian Queer Archives and will remain in the permanent collection. This is the second project following QRAVE where by Ryan is donating significant and important materials relating to the local LGBTQIA+ communities.

These donations will be directed towards paying for the performances director, and production team more generally. It will also be directed towards the technical costs of this ambitious project.