Following this year’s call out for local artists, Northern Pride is excited to unveil the talented artists selected to take centre stage at the inaugural Newcastle Pride Fringe Festival and Newcastle Pride 2025, presented in partnership with NE1 and Newcastle City Council.
Working together with Creative Central NCL and Curious Arts, Northern Pride set local artists a creative brief to express themselves through their chosen art form and respond to this year’s theme, Unapologetically Visible.
Among the recipients of the two Creative Commissions grants worth £2,500 are Christopher Niari and Sam Barley, local fashion designers renowned for their bold custom pieces for drag artists. The grant will support Christopher and Sam in developing new designs to be unveiled during the Pride Fringe Festival, bringing their dynamic aesthetic to a wider audience.
The second commission has been awarded to Lady Kitt, a sculptor known for creating impressive and socially conscious installations. Kitt’s Newcastle Pride 2025 installation will offer festivalgoers a place to pause and reflect, serving as both a sanctuary and a physical tribute to the work it takes for LGBTQIA+ people to be unapologetically visible.
All art forms were encouraged, which has resulted in an eclectic mix of singers, designers, and artists, celebrating everything the vibrant LGBTQIA+ community has to offer.
In addition to the two fully funded commissions, three further artists have received Research and Development Get Ready grants to help them create new work or enhance existing ideas. Amy Langdown is one of these lucky creatives who will have the opportunity to showcase their talents with Out Of Your Head! (OOYH!), a themed poetry night where Amy will look to create an event that dispels attitudes around spoken word. This event will be included as part of this year’s Pride Fringe, alongside singer songwriter Malik Abdul. Malik, someone who is receiving funding for the first time, will use this opportunity and their musical talents to bring together people and community in celebration of their intersectional identity. Finally, EJ Raymond will use the Get Ready grant to screen their short film, Ye Olde Wishing Well, to raise awareness of the deaf community and highlight the barriers deaf creatives continue to face.
Vix Leaney, Project Manager at Creative Central NCL said:
“We are really pleased to announce the winning artists for this year’s Pride Festival. We received so many incredible submissions for the creative commissions with local artists from all walks of life, and it’s really inspiring to see the talent that is right here in the North East. It’s brilliant to be working in partnership with Northern Pride to give them a unique platform to showcase their creativity in Newcastle city centre this summer.”
Speaking on being selected for one of this year’s creative commissions, Christopher Niari said:
“To us, ‘unapologetically visible’ means being unashamedly yourself, and outwardly expressing your queerness boldly and unapologetically. Receiving this funding is absolutely amazing, it gives us a license to create without limitations, therefore allowing us to express our points of view as artists completely unchained.
“We really hope to put a spotlight directly on the talent within the fashion and design community within the North East, and really champion the queer excellence that runs deeply through it; a spotlight that will hopefully be lasting.”
Also speaking on their successful commission, Lady Kitt said:
“It feels great to be supported by local LGBTQIA+ organisations in my creative work. It means I can continue my research into Queer Creative Health, particularly how art interventions can help to reduce stress and emotional labour for multiple marginalised communities.
“To me, ‘unapologetically visible’ means having the support, resources, care and community to remain visible even in the current climate. With the funding, I plan to run workshops for local people on ‘how to stay Unapologetically Visible in troubled times’. Through this, attendees can share ideas which will be woven together to create an installation, which I hope offers a space for rest, connection, and contemplation at this year’s Newcastle Pride celebration.”
For the details of Pride Fringe and Newcastle Pride 2025, head to https://www.northern-pride.com/2025