Mother US' ‘The Gay Blood Collection’ Protests Outdated Law That Prevents Gay Men from Donating Blood

Independent creative company Mother has launched 'The Gay Blood Collection', an initiative which launched during NYFW.

Since the 1980s the FDA has treated men who have sex with men as second-class citizens, banning the donation of their life-saving blood due to outdated and impractical fear of HIV and AIDS contamination. 

Back in 2018, Mother wanted to take a stand on the ban by kicking off a Blood is Blood initiative, where they printed t-shirts utilizing ink made from the blood of gay men (including some of their employees). But unfortunately, nothing has changed since then and the ban still exists today. 

During NYFW 2022, Mother tapped into the spirit of making bold statements and commenting on culture by debuting a new kind of collection – The Gay Blood Collection – to drive awareness of this issue, and to let consumers be part of the solution via the sale of protest art tools. 

The ambition is that with these tools, others can help make some bloody noise on this issue – whether it’s shirts, murals, or protest signs to fight back against the FDA’s homophobic policies. 

Tools within the collection include:

- Gay Blood Acrylic Paint - $30

- Gay Blood Fountain Pen - $45

- Gay Blood Screen Printing Ink - $50

- Gay Blood Paint Pen - $35

- Gay Blood Spray Paint - $200 (Note: the Gay Blood Spray Paint can is an eco-friendly alternative to aerosol) 

To help drive awareness on this effort, Mother teamed up with some noteworthy names within the LGBTQIA+ community across different verticals. Each of these individuals will be creating stand out pieces of protest utilizing the ink, and all will be auctioned off on mother-goods.com/:

“The Gay Blood Collection” Partners

Gus Kenworthy - Olympic Silver Medalist, will be creating a piece on one of his limited-edition Pride Ski Goggles

Milan Zrnic - artist and fashion photographer, will be creating a custom print on a vintage blazer with a Rorschach inspired overlay

Daniel Ortiz - figurative oil painter and fine artist, will be creating an original 38.5” x 39” oil painting that depicts a gay male with a sense of surrender, calmness and sensuality (See more here, here, and here)

Mikel Welch - celebrity interior designer and TV personality, will be creating a 40” x 40” Rothko-inspired, acrylic painting meant to serve as a home decor statement