OUR STORY
We were founded in 2018, in our favorite coffee shop in town. We wanted to choose a name that stood out and grabbed attention, but also showed our connection to the art world. "Happy Little Trees" is something Bob Ross, the king of onscreen painting, says about his paintings. Any time an accident occurs on his canvas, he turns it into something beautiful, and cherishes it. We think that's a great philosophy to live by, so we paid homage to his saying.
Gay Little Trees
Queer Artists of Cookeville
Gay Little Trees is a group of Cookeville-based Queer and LGBTQ+ artists. We seek to share our art and experiences to better our community.
Gay Little Trees Crew
Mary Mae
Artist Handle: AlienMaryMae
Medium: Digital, Gouache, Acrylic
Orientation: Pansexual, Polyamorous, She/her
Inspirations: Space, the Appalachian mountains, anime, history/archeology, and folktales.
A bit about Mary Mae: Working hard since day one, I am constantly chasing inspiration and creating on the go. I graduated with a BFA in Sequential Art from Savannah College of Art and Design in 2013, started showing my work at shows and conventions in 2010, opened The Art Jam in 2016, and founded Gay Little Trees in 2018. I adore red pandas, biscuits and gravy, and lovingly refer to my body of work as kawaii space trash.
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Cat
Artist Handle: PaintedDeer
Mediums: watercolor, acrylic, and digital art
Orientation: Panromantic Demisexual
Inspirations: Nature, mythology, fairytales, emotion, science, and dreams.
A bit about Cat: I grew up in a small city in East Tennessee. I climbed trees, and waded through creeks in search of frogs and fairies. My love of nature came with me when I moved to Nashville to attend The Art Institute. I graduated with honors, and continued my career, working as a storyboard revisionist for Dreamworks TV, and then moved into freelance; Illustrating a series of children's books. I teach acrylic painting, and travel often; selling my watercolor and digital illustrations at conventions around the USA.
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Kris
Artist Handle: Chomperbee
Medium: Digital Art and Copics
Orientation: NonBinary Lesbian (they/them please!)
Inspirations: Ghibli, Godzilla, Jurassic Park, nature, animals, cartoons, Pokemon, 80s/90s fashion and animated movies, Disney, Sailor Moon, cryptid lore, and bugs!
A bit about Kris: I'm a freelance illustrator from middle TN with a love for drawing monsters in cute pastel colors! I've been drawing since I was very young and even have a degree in media arts and animation!
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Jem
Artist Handle: Quaggy/QuaggyArt
Mediums: Digital and Traditional Mixed Media, Sequential Art, Painting, and Linocut
Orientation: Nonbinary. They/Them
Inspirations: Animals, 60s-80s comics and animation, nature, camping, theme parks, and queer history.
A bit about Jem: Plucked out of the Texas dirt and blown across the US, Jem is currently rooted in Tennessee to make art among friends and nature. An early childhood interest in art became a passion and creative escape, and at 28 they are a freelance illustrator with a decade of experience selling and freelancing across the US at multiple events and conventions every year. Jem has contributed to mural projects in several states, and most enjoys creating work that creates positive impacts and experiences.
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Wes
Artist Handle: SkunkJunkArt
Medium: Photography, Acrylic, Digital
Orientation: Pan He/Him
Inspirations: Nature, Fluids, Space, Sunsets, and Cute Animals.
A bit about Wes: As long as I can remember I have always had a camera with me. Even when I was a child I would run around with a silly film camera taking pictures of grass, bees, or any other thing that caught my eye. It has been amazing growing up with rapid-evolving camera technology that allows me to better capture just how I see the world. I'm here because I want to share that with you.
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Other than photography, I paint. I love to mix and match colors. When I started pour painting, I knew I was onto something. One has little control over how these pieces come out. The only constant is me, my color choices, and how I start them on the canvas. I mix the colors and let gravity do the rest.
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Brianna
Artist Handle: Rhazberriquartz
Mediums: Watercolor and Digital
Orientation: Nonbinary Pansexual (She/Her or They/Them)
Inspirations: Mythology, Magical Girls, H.P. Lovecraft, Rankin Bass, C.L.A.M.P and Stephanie Pu-min Law
A bit about Brianna: A 27 year old from TN. My main subject matter is: Monster Folk and Magical Girls. I started doing art when I was very little starting with fanart and growing from there. On top of illustration and selling at numerous events around TN and GA - I host education panels about how to use fanart to help instill a love of learning in the classroom! I’m also the Con-Chair of Omnicon TN in Cookeville,TN a two day comic con for us local Cookevillians.
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Egan
Artist Handle: BeesAndBoswells
Mediums: Watercolor, colored pencil and digital
Orientation: Bisexual and Transgender (He/Him/His)
Inspirations: LGBTQA+ literature, LGBTQA+ fashion, Celtic mythology, Witchcraft, Plants/flower language and
Space stuff.
A bit about Egan: I am 23 years old and I am a Resident artist of Cookeville, TN. I am active in my local community as both a member of gay little trees, but also a executive board member of the local pride board (Upper Cumberland Pride). One of my accomplishments is I designed the shirt logo for Upper Cumberland Pride 2019.
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