Suzanne Forbes

About Suzanne Forbes

Suzanne Forbes is a traditionally trained figurative artist who makes documentary art of queer culture and Berlin life. She also works in mixed media. She is a former New Yorker who immigrated to Berlin with her third husband and their two cats. Her work is crowdfunded by the support of her Patrons on Patreon; you could help! In previous lives Suzanne was a graffiti artist in downtown NY, a courtroom artist for CBS and CNN, a penciller for DC Comics on Star Trek, and a live-drawing chronicler of Bay Area alternative culture.

This is Perfect Tyler performing for Disabilitease!

What an incredible, iconic wheelchair burlesque piece! I looooove Perfect Tyler, find and follow them here! This performance was for the November 2020 edition of Disabilitease.

Updated Jan 25 2022 with writer Kay Ulanday Barrett!

I did these two drawings of NY based literary powerhouse Kay Ulanday Barrett as he performed a poem for this edition of Disabilitease. I liked the likenesses but wanted to add color, and it took me over a year! During which I have come to know and love their work.

Their insta is here and his website is here.

Little Peaches is an international performer and producer and DisabiliTease is her baby. Several years ago, a serious flare up of several of her medical conditions left her unable to dance. Being the stubborn renegade stripper that she is, Little Peaches grabbed her wheelchair and re-trained herself to dance with wheels!

About booking performers with disabilities, she says:

Performers with disabilities are often overlooked for shows because they may need a little extra help when it comes to making the show accessible for them. That may be having wheelchair or walking aid access, assistance with travel, assistance to and from the stage to aid with visual impairments, BSL interpreters or a quiet space to retreat to if they are feeling overwhelmed. These little things can be surprisingly easy to put into place but more often than not, they aren’t.

Arielle Firecracker is the other half of the Disabilitease team!

Arielle is a gorgeous tattooed bombshell who burns up the stage! Here she is photographed by Veronika Marx.

Arielle Firecracker by Veronika Marx 2020

I’m working on more drawings from this event.

Due to my own disability, it’s going slower than usual, but I will get them up eventually 🙂

Edit March 27, 2023: MUCH slower than usual! BUT.

Finally finished! Gorgeous @ebony_rose_dark walking and talking in London for @disabilitease online show back in 2020.

I am incredibly grateful to my Patreon Patrons, whose monthly financial support makes it possible for me work safely at home.

As usual these drawings are licensed Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) for all to share and enjoy!

In addition, I release the copyright on each drawing to the performer shown and they may use the drawings for their own profit and pleeeasssure in any way they choose.

Today is March 31 2021, Trans Day of Visibility.

But visibility is not enough, as the headline of the article says.

Chase Strangio and Raquel Willis have launched Trans Week of Visibility and Action.

There is a deadly wave of anti-trans legislation happening in the US.

If they’re implemented and become law, the bills in Arkansas and Alabama will tear life-saving health care away from trans youth.

You can follow Raquel Willis (twitter, insta) and Chase Strangio (twitter, insta) on social to see actions for Trans Week of Action.

Call and email politicians.

You can donate to trans orgs in states where trans kids are under attack, like South Dakota’s TPAN, InTRANSitive AR and TKO Alabama. The ACLU is active in fighting these bills and laws, as is Lambda Legal.

ChipInHead.com

Suzanne Forbes, a New Yorker thriving in Berlin. Crowdfunded documentary art made possible by the generous support of her Patrons. https://www.patreon.com/SuzanneForbes.

Author Archives: Suzanne Forbes