about | Noah Grigni

bio:

Hi, I'm Noah! I'm a freelance artist and children's book illustrator, living and working on the patch of Muskogee land known as Atlanta, Georgia. I make art for everyone, but especially for trans folks, and extra-especially for trans kids. If that's you, I hope my art brings you joy when you need it, keeps you company when you feel alone, and reminds you that you have a big, bold, beautiful community waiting to welcome you! If you're a trans adult, I hope my art makes your inner child feel safe and seen. If you're anyone anywhere, I hope my art affirms the love and creativity in your heart, or at the very least makes you smile. Thanks for visiting my page!

artist statement:

My art explores dreamwork, collaborating with my community to illustrate our individual and collective visions for the future. I try to honor these dreams on paper, striving to hold space for all people to acknowledge our deepest desires as sacred, living things which we must tend to with love and care. I find myself returning to themes of euphoria, healing, and shapeshifting in my work, as I experience the world through the lens of my own dysphoria and PTSD. Above all, my work is driven by a burning desire to uplift my community and see change in my lifetime. I want to see the world transformed by radical love and liberation! If I can't see it in front of me, I can draw it on paper, and hope one thing leads to the next.

links:

If you like my art, you can follow me on Instagram to see some of it, or support me on Patreon to see all of it (and even get stuff in the mail!) I also have pins for sale here, and I have a free printable art activity for kids here. I am currently taking a break from selling my art on Etsy and Shirts4Change to focus on finishing my book.

recent work:

Protect Trans Dreams, my show at Boston Children's Museum, just ended!

Protect Trans Dreams was a series of life size acrylic portraits of local trans kids, painted in dream scenarios they described to me, on display at Boston Children's Museum from April 13th to July 24th, 2022. I worked on this project for three years, from 2019 to 2022, in collaboration with families in my community. I honestly can't believe it happened! You can see the paintings here on my site, and learn more about the project from Boston Globe, TransLash Media, and WBUR Public Radio.

current work:

I am slowly and steadily working on my first solo children's book, Mama Moon, and my first graphic novel, Cloudland. Both books are deeply personal, and are coming out in 2024 from Henry Holt! Mama Moon is a picture book about a child who muses that their mother, who has bipolar disorder, is like the moon. Cloudland is the story of a trans boy's first crush, at an all-girls summer camp in rural Georgia. Both books are based on my own childhood memories. I've been working on these two stories for what feels like forever, and I cannot wait to put them into the world!

published work:

I am the illustrator of It Feels Good To Be Yourself by Theresa Thorn (2019), The Every Body Book by Rachel Simon (2020), and The Gender Identity Workbook For Kids by Kelly Storck (2018). My art has also appeared in We're Still Here: An All Trans Comics Anthology (2018), The Transgender Heroes Coloring Book (2019), and on the covers of Rolling Warrior by Judy Heumann (2021), Too Bright To See by Kyle Lukoff (2021), The Ship We Built by Lexie Bean (2020), The Other Animals by Audible (2019), and Boston Pride Guide (2019 and 2020).

contact:

Say hi, don’t be shy! I am still booking events and school visits for 2022, with limited availability. If you are interested in hiring me to illustrate a book or book cover, please contact my literary agent, Kelly Sonnack, at kelly@andreabrownlit.com. For all other inquiries, please use the form below.

education:

I graduated from Lesley University in 2018, with a BFA in Illustration and a concentration in Creative Writing. I also completed an AIR Serenbe Focus Fellowship in 2020, and returned to Serenbe for an independent residency in 2021. I would love to do more residencies and fellowships! I am always looking for opportunities to continue my education, within and outside of academic structures. I believe in the power of communal knowledge; my community has taught me more than any institution ever could. I am always learning and unlearning!

values:

I believe in art as a means of nurturing dreams, healing from trauma, and envisioning change, at both individual and collective scales. I believe in adrienne maree brown's fractal model of change: how we are at the small scale is how we are at the large scale. Therefore, we cannot enact systemic change in the world at large, without first visualizing change in ourselves and our communities, through art and other means of generative communication. I use my art to imagine a more equitable future, free of cissexism, ableism, and carceral punishment. I strive throughout my life and work to honor the Earth, resist capitalism, and stand in solidarity with Black and brown peers leading the movement towards collective liberation. I support abolition of police and prisons, reparations, and Land Back. I believe that we have all the tools we need to dismantle systems of oppression and replace them with networks of community care, centering the most marginalized. I believe that artists have the power to remind people of their humanity, and inspire direct action towards liberation.

identity:

I am a white, transmasculine, disabled, trauma survivor. I strive in and out of work to be allied with, and follow the leadership of, Black, Indigenous, migrant, poor, femme, fat, sex worker, and other marginalized communities. If you are looking to hire an artist who identifies within these communities, please feel free to reach out, and I will provide referrals to the best of my ability!

partial client list:

My clients are typically activists, educators, writers, publishers, and community organizers. Past illustration clients include Southern Fried Queer Pride, Trans Resistance MA, Transmasculinidad, Boston Pride, Macmillan, Penguin Random House, Audible, Jessica Kingsley Publishers, New Harbinger Press, Beacon Press, Utile Design, and Berklee College. (These are clients who hired me to make art; see below for clients who hired me for speaking and teaching.)

events:

I love visiting schools and community spaces, both physically and virtually! I have taught workshops at elementary schools, middle schools, high schools, universities, museums, libraries, book festivals, and community centers. Some of these spaces include Lesley University, Northeastern University, MassArt, Amherst College, the Henry Frost Children's Program, Milton Academy, Acton Academy at Serenbe, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Children's Museum, Charis Books, Little Shop of Stories, and the American Library in Paris. Here are some photos from past events: