Sanctuary is a series of intimate portraits of queer, trans, and non-binary individuals in their living spaces, celebrating the diversity of experiences within the LGBTQIA+ community. To create these portraits, I spend time with each individual, engaging in conversation to capture authentic moments that reflect their true selves and the environments they have crafted. The interiors become as important as the people, creating an archive of objects and memorabilia that further tell the narrative of the queer and trans experience. In these portraits, everyone is free to exist in their truth, away from the threats of police violence, external homophobia, and politicized transphobia that remain deeply rooted in American society. As the current administration escalates efforts to erase trans existence through executive orders and policy rollbacks, restricting access to healthcare, gender recognition, and basic civil rights, it is more urgent than ever for this community representation to exist and be amplified.

Stas Ginzburg is a Brooklyn-based artist and queer refugee from Russia. A 2006 Parsons graduate, he focuses on portrait photography, emphasising LGBTQIA+ communities and activism. His work has been featured at the Queens Museum, Photoville and the National Portrait Gallery in London. His images are included in “Revolution Is Love: A Year of Black Trans Liberation, ” a book published by Aperture in fall 2022. Ginzburg’s project Sanctuary, an intimate collection of portraits of queer, trans, and non-binary individuals in their homes, was shortlisted for the Arnold Newman Prize for New Directions in Photographic Portraiture in 2024 and the Sony World Photography Awards in 2025.

Artist website: stasginzburg.com