Ikea pulled out all the stops for its new loveseat collection celebrating Pride and LGBTQ+ stories, and people are loving it
Courtesy of Ikea Canada
- Ikea has made 10 loveseats with slipcovers inspired by different Pride flags.
- They're modeled on flags like the asexual, transgender, nonbinary, genderfluid, and lesbian flags.
- The slipcovers were designed by LGBTQ+ people and will be shown at Ikea Canada stores this summer.
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Courtesy of Ikea Canada
The collection is "a series of one-of-a-kind slipcovers inspired by the colours of different Pride flags, and the lived experiences from a wide spectrum of gender and sexual identities they represent," according to a press release from the company.
The slipcovers for the loveseats were made by four designers, three of whom identify as queer and one of whom is an ally to the LGBTQ+ community.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
"This partnership is our way of helping artists in different communities express themselves on a large platform in a way that's been tricky during COVID-19," said Claudia Mayne, Ikea Canada's director of marketing communications, in the release. "Each Love Seat was designed in collaboration with a community member and inspired by the colours and personal meaning of the corresponding flag. Each designer had the freedom to create a one-of-a-kind piece of art."
The campaign also features LGBTQ+ people sharing their stories of "self-love, romantic love, family love, chosen love, or community love," the release says.
One of the flags used as inspiration in the collection is the transgender flag.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
A variety of blue and pink images, including illustrations of flowers and faces, adorn this loveseat.
"Any trans person will tell you that dating, establishing connections, relationships, that is one of the most daunting things because you're never sure if the person is going to accept you," said Jules Reeves, one of the transgender people who shared their stories as part of the campaign.
A second loveseat in the series was also inspired by the transgender flag.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
The slipcover on this one features a blue, pink and white rainbow and a handful of puffy white clouds.
"It took me years to realize that I was trans," Nathaniel Le May told Ikea Canada. "It took me some time because I was really worried about what other people thought. But at a certain point I just said to myself, "It doesn't bother me anymore. I'll do what I want.'"
The loveseat collection also includes a piece with pink, yellow, and blue splotches, modeled after the colors of the pansexual flag.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
"I don't know who I'm going to end up with, I don't know their gender, but I do feel like there are no limits to who I will love in the future and I feel secure in that now," Sarah Bellstedt shared with Ikea Canada about identifying as pansexual.
The slipcover designed to represent the bisexual flag is covered in textured pink, purple, and blue handprints.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
The loveseat also features the message, "When you change 'or' to 'and,' nobody believes you." The line comes from a poem written by Brian Lanigan. The line refers to a previous relationship in which Lanigan's ex didn't accept his bisexuality.
"It's not all of me, it's part of me," Lanigan told Ikea Canada. "That label only describes one section of my life and identity. My art and conversations don't all have to be based around bisexuality. I can also simply exist."
The loveseat that takes after the asexual flag is decorated with purple, black, gray, and white ruffles.
Courtesy of Ikea Canada
"There's nothing wrong with me; I'm not broken," Brianna Roye told Ikea Canada about being asexual. "I just experience sexual attraction and love in a different way."
Another loveseat in the collection features flowers in all the colors of the rainbow.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
Waseem Shayk spoke with Ikea Canada about the goal of being more inclusive in the LGBTQ+ community. Shayk is the co-founder of Canada's biggest event for queer South Asian people. The event was first organized to address the "lack of representation in many of the larger Queer parties in Toronto," according to Ikea Canada.
This piece is intended to symbolize the progress flag, which builds on the rainbow Pride flag by adding stripes representing transgender people, those who live with HIV/AIDS or died from it, and LGBTQ+ people of color.
Another loveseat takes its color palette from the two-spirit flag.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
"Two-spirited people have been here way before colonization, way before the LGBTQ acronym," Scott Wabano said to Ikea Canada. "It's always been within our cultures, and it's important that we start to acknowledge that."
Ikea Canada also made a watercolor-esque loveseat celebrating the lesbian flag.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
"It's a source of inspiration, belonging, progress and acceptance," Jena Nasser told Ikea Canada of the lesbian flag.
The nonbinary flag is also represented in the collection. The loveseat representing it has black, purple, yellow, and white strips running down it.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
"Having chosen family based in queer community is such a beautiful and uplifting thing because these people understand what you've been through and they can relate in a way that only people who've lived in your experience can," Marisa Rosa Grant told Ikea Canada. "Having spaces where I am seeing Black queer folks highlighted and uplifted, it's very empowering and it definitely helped me through my whole journey in discovering myself."
The genderfluid flag was also a source of inspiration for one of Ikea's loveseats.Courtesy of Ikea Canada
"I had people and forces around me telling me that my thoughts and feelings about myself were something to be corrected; I knew deep down that they were wrong," John Walsh shared with Ikea Canada. "You've got to keep trusting yourself."
The loveseats will be on display at select IKEA Canada locations this summer. They are not available for purchase.Getty Images / Sjoerd van der Wal / Contributor
"This year's Love Seats collaboration aligns with our commitment to create community for, and uplift the voices of, our 2SLGBTQ+ co-workers and customers, so that they feel welcomed, respected and appreciated for who they are," said John Williams, Ikea Canada's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Leader, in the release. "We want people of all sexual orientations and gender identities to feel at home at IKEA and everywhere."
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