Queer bodies as Quimera’s

“To be a drag queen is to be a superhero”, declared Paloma, the last and first winner of DragRace France, “the idea is to be stronger than reality”.

Born and based in Brazil, Victor Liborio, known as Quimera, is a queer and non-binary illustrator and self-proclaimed “colorful and hybrid creature”. Out of the need to reclaim their own body and sexuality, they came up with Quimera, their own character, their transformation.

Reminiscent of the world of Japanese illustration and anime (think JoJo pose!) and multiplayer online role-playing games, their detailed neo-byzantine outfits enhance the real. They inspire power and bring to mind a multitude of references: Lady Gaga, Victor Liborio’s main idol, epic films like “The Lord of the Rings” or the “Hobbit”, and more broadly queer fashion in all its intensity and uniqueness.

Quimera was transposed to some famous drag queens, Victor Liborio collaborating with none other than Violet Chachki and Aquaria. They are also behind the incredible cover of thesingle “Rajadão” by Pabblo Vittar. Exalting their sensuality and eroticism, the garment’s illustrative power brings another layer of force and fantasy.

On their TikTok, they show their illustration process step by step, highlighting the level of detail they put into their overlaid creations. The artist themselves is often the subject of their creations, their mirror selfies opening a door to another reality. Because the Quimera project is first and foremost for themselves, something that helped them overcome difficulties and traumas. And if the project expanded to other bodies, their work even being on the cover of Playboy Ukraine in January 2022, it is a fantastical self-journey first.