“As someone who grew up in a religious community and saw only straight leaders of faith. Seeing Fran’s work made me wish I could go back to be a child in a more diverse environment and hopefully be freer to ask questions about life. Even through I’m a straight cis woman seeing faith leaders who are open about who they are and practicing their faith openly, let’s me believe that the next generation will have a much more positive experience with religion.

Fran’s work really captures the depths and personalities of all of the different faith leaders and what their journeys have been so far. I know that her work impacts so many people and gives space for everyone to gain clarity on where they would like to find themselves on the religion and belief spectrums.”

Avi Green

“This collection makes me feel safe”

Anonymous

“Spending time in the Synagogue as a new member and seeing the queer faith leaders collection was like coming home in so many ways. Recently connecting with my faith, for reason similar to Fran’s and so many other people’s stories, where growing up being othered due to queerness meant, an unnecessary severing of our faith. This exhibition felt ever more important and necessary. The photographs tell individual stories, in the strength of people holding space, beautifully bathed in ethereal light. These stark though candid images confront intersectional themes of transgender, queer, race, in multi-faith approaches. It is a reminder of the strength we all have together in our values, and the importance of these religious spaces. I couldn’t have felt more privileged to explore the photography of my people, with my tribe, and cannot recommend the exhibition more highly.”

Theo McGowan

“I found Marshall’s collection and exhibition Queer Religion to be a wonderful way of holding space for queer people of faith and promoting interreligious queer affirmation and community. She affirms that queer people can have careers and futures within the Church, but most importantly, that queer people need the same kind of communities and support systems that often develop in spaces of worship but which are often lost when they come out. Her exhibition, I discovered, was a ritual in healing and a prayer for queer futures in the spaces that have historically caused LGBTQ+ individuals the most intense physical and spiritual harm.”

Emma Cieslik