Juror Spotlight
Luis BracamontesFounder & DirectorUnwanted Words Foundation
Luis Bracamontes (he/they) is a queer Mexican poet and brand marketing expert based in Rotterdam. Founder of Unwanted Words, an award-winning platform for LGBTQ+ poets in the Netherlands, and creator of the Queer & Feminist Poetry Awards and Anthology. His creative work explores queer joy, intimacy, and spirituality through a decolonial, intersectional lens. Luis holds a BSc in Communication & Marketing and an Erasmus Mundus Master in New Media Arts. With over eight years of experience across three continents, he has led digital content strategy for global companies including Bunq, Tiqets, and Soly. Luis blends community-building with strategic thinking that centers connection, identity and authenticity. His work has been featured in Ars Electronica Festival, Poetry International Festival, Stedelijk Museum, Opera Dagen Festival and more.
For those who might not be familiar, can you tell us what Unwanted Words is all about?
Of course! This is one of my babies. Unwanted Words is the first platform for emerging queer poets and spoken word artists in the Netherlands founded in 2018. Our goal as a collective is to create spaces where LGBTQ+ talent can thrive and connect with like-minded communities. We are on a mission to provide more options for safe(r) spaces and opportunities for queer connection and growth. We do this through spoken word workshops & open mics such as our Queer Poetry Nights series in Amsterdam and Rotterdam. As well as initiatives to spotlight the best queer talent in our community such as our 1st & 2nd Queer & Feminist Poetry Awards and our Queer & Feminist Poetry Anthology. We aim to promote and empower queer voices from an intersectional approach. In 2019 we won the award for Best New Project by Rotterdam Pride and in 2022 we were featured as a “Game Changer” in the Rotterdam Street Culture Week.
What inspired the creation of Unwanted Words and how has its mission evolved over time?
Being a poet and artist can be isolating sometimes. And after living in 6 countries in less than 4 years, by the time I moved to the Netherlands in 2018 I was desperately craving community. And it was the work of creating safer spaces by grassroots initiatives like the Gender Bending Queer Party by Non (and their team) as well as organizations like The Hang-Out 010 and Queer Rotterdam that made me desire to create more spaces like this under the umbrella of poetry and spoken word. Very quickly after organizing a few surprisingly and unexpectedly successful queer poetry events, I realized that there was a big demand and need for safer third spaces for the queer community that were not for-profit and that truly made an effort to be inclusive to a diverse community not only when it came to gender and sexuality, but also race, class and physical ability.
And in the process of creating these spaces alongside an incredible group of rotating volunteers that were committed to show love and warmth to their community, we realized that there was so much hidden talent that was hungry for opportunities to share their voices and their art. This is also why we decided to become a platform that could help them showcase their work and open new doors through our 2 editions of the Queer & Feminist Poetry Awards as well as our book, the Queer & Feminist Poetry Anthology Vol. I. After almost 7 years, our team continues to be devoted and committed to the voices and talent of our community of artists but also the community we’ve created alongside all the visitors and partner organizations in the Netherlands like Spraakhuloos, the Writer’s Guide, Frontaal, Poetry International Festival, Word-Up, The Hang-Out 010, WORM, Poetry Circle, Zwaarte Schaap, The Pleasure Society, Queer Rotterdam, and many more.
What are some of the current projects or initiatives you’re most excited about right now?
We are cooking some really exciting new projects. For instance, our team members Leonie and Tuaca are working on the second edition of our “Poeting Queer History” events, revisiting LGBTQ+ history through the lens of queer historians and poets. Belen, Mir & Keanu are working on a “Spicy Poetry Nights” series, featuring erotic and sensual poetry from a feminist and queer lens. And I am currently producing a project in collaboration with the Poetry International Festival called “Ballroom is a Poem”, combining voguing and ballroom culture with spoken word. As a team, we are also working on the Vol. II of our Queer & Feminist Poetry Anthology with the theme of Queer Joy & Gender Euphoria. This is all on top of our monthly open mics in Amsterdam and Rotterdam.
Are there any emerging voices or small collectives you’ve discovered through Unwanted Words that are leading the way?
Definitely! KLAUW is a queer BIPOC collective that is pushing things forward. The way they mix activism, with community care, art and joyful moments of resistance and celebration is quite unique and it always blows my mind. They organize queer parties, but also give performances, raise funds for causes like the Free Palestine movement and even launched a magazine showcasing local queer talent.
Queer & Sober is another project that comes to mind. As I mentioned before, I think the most relevant projects that can start trends and new creative ideas are community-based. And the Q&S community is offering something a lot of other spaces are lacking: a space to belong and express yourself without the temptation or pressure of using alcohol and other substances. Queer creativity, art and expression is often challenged or limited since a lot of LGBTQ+ spaces are minefields for substance addiction. I’ve met so many inspiring and creative souls that have created their best work in their journeys of sobriety or exploring a more “sober-curious” approach.
What’s your dream project?
I want to start a cult. Yes, you read that right. A cult.
Okay, but jokes aside, I am working on creating a hybrid community that practices devotion to change and failure. Change is the only certainty in life. But it is a very scary thing for us humans and it can often be very isolating, especially for creative people… whether it’s a career change, a break-up or divorce, burnout, getting laid-off or simply going through an existential or mid-life crisis. So what if you could be part of a collective where you can navigate the uncertainties of life changes in community? What if there was a cult where the only requirement was to venerate the most “unlovable” parts of yourself?
Since now we are in the Age of Aquarius and community-based and collective efforts will continue being on the rise, I dream of playing a character of a “faux cult leader” in a playful space where we get together and be our messy selves together as we go through transitions in life. I always found the idea of cults both terrifying but also really funny.
There’s a deep need to belong that sometimes gets exploited and abused by these charismatic leaders. But perhaps if done in an obvious and tongue-in-cheek culty environment we can demystify the fears of making the wrong choice and making mistakes in the process of changing, and do this in co-creation and with a decentralized, horizontal structure (so no, no cult to personality here). And in case you were wondering… Yes, I am fully aware this is an incredibly unhinged idea, but seeing how crazy and “unprecedented” life is nowadays I say why not.
Luis is ready to review the best work from small shops. Submit your projects to the jury before the Final Entry Deadline on Friday, July 25th.