We had lots of entries in to the Converse Design with Pride competition, but one stood out from the rest. Jaina’s artistic representation of what Pride means to them really made us stop and think.

Jaina’s design combines human emotion with powerful pen strokes, bold colours and natural textures for striking impact (below).

For this competition we teamed up with Converse to give you the chance to show us what Pride really means. The prizes up for grabs included a £5k grant to fund your creative projects and career coaching from the Converse design team! The 5 runners up selected are also going to receive a Converse product of their choice. Here are the runners up below, along with some context behind their designs.

Kiana

'When I came out as bisexual to my friends, I felt a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. Inside I felt so much happier and more myself as if my bones were full of colour. This design represents that.'

Hala

"This is what pride means to me! I wrote a poem about self acceptance and acceptance from the LGBTQ+ community and how incredible it feels to be apart of something.'

Petra

'When I think about Pride, I immediately think of the freedom to love, feel, live and taking control of your own life and destiny. It is a symbol of power and hope for those who want to escape the constraints of this world. It’s a conduit for people to write their own story. This piece shows the complexity and the simplicity of love at the same time. The intertwined lines represent the electric buzz that love makes you feel, used with the colours of Pride. Don’t ever be afraid to show off your true colours.'

Harriet

'Pride to me means being able to express my gender identity without fear. This piece reflect how I eel on the inside and how I wish I could have the confidence to look. This is me. I am non-binary and I am proud.'

Kavita

'Pride means being free to be me. In my design, it represents my freedom, my world where I feel at peace to be who I am. I added the clouds because clouds feel peaceful and beautiful. It gives the illusion where time stands still, there are no rules, no judgement but just the life and the soul of the world. This is what pride feels like, it symbolises the beauty of the souls of this world. I chose these colours as I wanted to emphasise the difference. Being part of the pride community we come from places where we are viewed that we're different but being different is beautiful and special.'