Countess Report & NAVA: Clear Expectations

A non-exhaustive overview of suggested best practice for art spaces, ranging from artist run initiatives to larger institutes, when working with trans, non-binary and gender diverse creatives.

Visibility and representation is not always an inherently positive and beneficial experience for those being represented and should not be assumed as such. Being ‘represented’ often comes at a large personal cost where artistic exposure does not equal actual resources or access to influence, nor does it make the lives of trans, non-binary and gender diverse artists easier. Visibility often means having to respond on someone else’s terms, speak only about one’s gender identity and provide evidence of, and defend, one’s own existence.

This resource has been compiled by artists, Spence Messih & Archie Barry. This resource has been copy-edited by Bobuq Sayed and proofread by EO Gill. This resource, in its first iteration, has been financially assisted by Countess and NAVA.