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Boys Do Cry


Illustration

Publication Design



A zine paying homage to a personal Tumblr blog I conceived in 2010, during my teenage years when I was still in the closet. This blog served as a sanctuary where I could curate images with themes like masculinity, homosexuality, and mental health. It was a means for me to explore and come to terms with my own queer identity. Now, a decade later, I created a series of illustrations inspired by some of my favorite images from that blog, as a way to commemorate this significant platform.

On the floating shipless oceans / I did all my best to smile / Till your singing eyes and fingers / Drew me loving to your isle / And you sang, "Sail to me / Sail to me; let me enfold you / Here I am, here I am / Waiting to hold you" / Did I dream you dreamed about me? / Were you here when I was full-sail? / Now my foolish boat is leaning / Broken lovelorn on your rocks / For you sing, "Touch me not / Touch me not; come back tomorrow / Oh, my heart—oh, my heart / Shies from the sorrow" / I’m as puzzled as a newborn child / I’m as riddled as the tide / Should I stand amid the breakers / Or should I lie with death, my bride? / Hear me sing, "Swim to me / Swim to me; let me enfold you / Here I am, here I am / Waiting to hold you"