Earl Rina

When I began Umang sa Dagat / ᜂᜋᜅ ᜐ ᜇᜄᜆ, I found myself diving into the q***rness already alive in the ocean. These soft‑bodied beings, sea slugs, nudibranchs, and their kin, live in ways that refuse rigid categories. Some shift s*x throughout their lives. Others carry multiple reproductive traits at once. Their bodies are fluid, adaptive, and unapologetically complex.
Queerness isn’t just human. It’s ecological. It’s ancient. It’s written into tide pools, coral reefs, and the quiet brilliance of creatures that rewrite the rules of biology simply by existing.
This piece is a love letter to that truth: that q***rness is not outside nature but deeply, beautifully within it.
This work is now in the collection of an anonymous owner.

Across these works, the macaque and the shifting humanoid figures become portals into q***rness as a natural, ancestral, and continually evolving part of life on Earth. In many animal species, including macaques, same‑s*x bonding, fluid social roles, and non‑linear kinship structures are essential to thriving communities. By placing these beings in surreal, cosmic landscapes, the artworks highlight how 2SLGBTQ+ identities echo these ecological truths: q***rness is adaptive, relational, and deeply rooted in the living world. The figures’ transformations and shared presence remind us that q***r existence is not an anomaly but a powerful expression of connection, creativity, and self‑defined becoming.
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Please check "Evocative Rich Grass Fields," which is currently part of the touring visual art exhibitions across Manitoba through the Arts Reach Manitoba (ARM) program under the Manitoba Arts Network.
The ARM program supports the circulation of high‑quality visual art exhibitions throughout the province, providing communities, especially rural and northern regions, with access to diverse artistic experiences. Through this initiative, selected artworks travel to multiple venues, allowing broader audiences to engage with contemporary Manitoba art, while also offering participating artists increased visibility and professional exposure.
Schedule:

March 28, 2026 – April 29, 2026 – May 30, 2026 – University College of the North (UCN), The Pas

June 1, 2026 – July 29, 2026 –International Peace Gardens

August 28, 2026 – September 28, 2026 – St. Andrews Heritage Centre

September 28, 2026 – October 28, 2026 – Arts Forward

Oct. 30, 2026 – Jan. 27, 2027 – University College of the North (UCN), Thompson