From the group exhibition A Long Arc: Photography and the American South Since 1845 at Atlanta’s High Museum of Art:
“Though Southern cities like Atlanta, New Orleans, and Savannah have been bastions of queer culture for decades, the religious and social conservatism that pervades in much of the region has rarely foregrounded stories and images of LGBTQIA+ lives. Peyton Fulford’s portraits center the queer experience within Southern life and the desire to find one’s circle. Rian with Friends shows a group of gender-nonconforming individuals, their bodies gently entwined and physically supporting one another within a lush bucolic setting. The portrait speaks to the complexities and fluidity of gender and expresses a collective identity for people forced to keep their true selves hidden in the face of a stridently resistant political culture.”
I grew up in a religious household in a small southern town. My mother was raised in the Sanctified Holy Church and my father was raised Southern Baptist. I did not feel comfortable coming out as queer until I was 21 years old.
For the majority of my life, I was unsure where I belonged in the world. It was difficult to navigate the space I was growing up in because I could not relate to it or understand my place within it. I never felt like my truest, most open self when conforming to the culture and ideologies around me. As I came to terms with my own identity, this project came to fruition.
In 2016, I began exploring the notion of intimacy and identity among the LGBTQ+ community in the American South. These are the people I have met and connected with along the way. Through this work, I have documented the exploration of one’s body, sexuality, and gender that comes along with growing up and identifying oneself.
My intention is to empower others and create an accepting space for queer kids that grow up in small towns and rural areas. Each individual in this series is dependent on another for support and understanding of their ever-changing identities.