Proud Studios CIC - Project UNCUT

Aim: UNCUT is a raw, striking portrait series by award-winning photographer Chris Jepson capturing the power and pride of Queer Joy.

Queer art isn’t a luxury. It’s a lifeline.

Proud Studios exists to make space for LGBTQ+ voices, stories and creativity. Projects like UNCUT bring our community together, tackle isolation and offer vital visibility.

When queer people see themselves reflected in art, it helps build confidence, connection and belonging.
When the wider world sees us, it challenges stereotypes and sparks understanding.

We’re raising funds to deliver more LGBTQ+ creative projects, more exhibitions and more collaborations.

Your support will help cover venue costs, materials, artist fees and outreach work, and support queer people from all backgrounds to take part.

This is about more than art. It’s about mental health, social cohesion and giving our community space to breathe and grow.

If you can, please donate. Share. Spread the word.
Let’s build something powerful – together.

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This is UNCUT — a raw, striking portrait series by award-winning photographer Chris Jepson capturing the power and pride of Queer Joy, shot in a barber’s chair. No filters, no retouching, no compromise. Just bold, beautiful people taking up space exactly as they are.

The Concept – Why A Barber’s Chair?

Barbershops have long been places of transformation – places where identities are shaped, confidence is built and stories are shared. But they haven’t always been welcoming for everyone. UNCUT reclaims that space for queer bodies, queer styles and queer joy. It’s about authenticity, visibility and saying this is me without hesitation.

Each subject will sit in the chair, lit with precision, styled with edge and captured in their purest form. Every scar, freckle, line and expression stays in. No softening, no smoothing, no erasing. This is a celebration, not a sanitisation.

The project is ongoing with a dozen participants already photographed – see here. 

This initial £3,000 target will allow us to collaborate with even more LGBTQ+ people and will pay for studio time, production and the participants' expenses so no-one is out of pocket. It will also cover the costs to product an exhibition, venue tbc, for LGBTQ+ History Month in Feb 2026, with a launch event and zine publication. As a not for profit CIC, anything in excess of teh target will go back in to LGBTQ+ community arts projects.

Check out some of our projects here.

Funding method

Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 9th September 2025 at 11:20pm