October 23, 2025
Disabled And Here: Interview with Nocturne
Hi! How would you like to introduce yourself? Hi, I’m Nocturne, a trans non-binary person. My pronouns are they/them, and I'm chronically ill/disabled. I love to sing and dance when my body allows the spoons. Music is a huge part of my life and is part of what helped me figure out my queer identity. I've also modeled around Portland off and on for the last 7ish years. I love poetry and have recently seen a lot of queer and Black open mics, but have yet to get the courage to go and perform a poem.
Are you a karaoke fan? Do you have any go-to karaoke or sing-at-the-top-of-your-lungs songs? I absolutely LOVE karaoke! Singing is one of my favorite things to do. I’m always listening to music and singing when I’m by myself. I have a huge list of karaoke songs. I think some of my favorites to start or end the night with are I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor, All I Ask by Adele, and my newest favorite What Is It About Me by Lola Young. I listen to music more than I watch TV, so my list of karaoke songs is ever growing and changing.
How would you describe your aesthetic and where do you get style inspiration? In short, I would describe my style as “yes.” If I have the chance to be extra and dress up, I’m there in a heartbeat. Though if I did have a go-to style that’s easy for me, it would be pseudo-punk/goth. Black clothes dominate my everyday wardrobe. I just love the freedom that comes with style and makeup. You can enjoy wearing anything if you aren’t a little bitch is one of my favorite mottos. It is the best kind of affirmation for me, because being overkind isn’t something my brain is good at giving myself.
My inspiration can be found in everything – the movies I watch, social media, or just whatever I dream up. Also, just the mystical beauty of space! Two Prides ago, I enjoyed being a cow just because I thought it was fun.
How did you get started as a model? You mentioned Portland Fashion Week during our shoot, and we’d love to hear more about your experience there too! I got my start modeling in 2018 with Curvy Chic Closet. At the time, they were doing two shows a year (Spring and Fall). I first auditioned for the Spring show, and almost backed out when I was in the lobby of the hotel where they were holding the audition. It was a show specifically for plus size bodies. Luckily, there were so many amazing women there who hyped me up and helped me calm my nerves to stay and finish. It was such a beautiful experience from start to finish.
From there, I started doing what’s called “Trade for Print” (TFP) photoshoots to expand my modeling experience. I ended up doing my first round of stock photos for a local company called AllGo that is like a Yelp for fat folks to be able to know if a venue or restaurant has accessible seating for all bodies.
Portland Fashion Week 2019 was such a wonderful experience. I found out about it because of the friends and community that I made at Curvy Chic and through TFP shoots! It was the largest show that I was a part of, with so many designers and models running around in the back. I love the organized chaos of the backstage at fashion shows!
You’re the President of the board running Radical Abundance Thrift Shop — how did you get involved and can you tell us about it? We have very humble origins, starting out as a group of volunteers wanting to create something for the most underserved communities: LGBTQIA2S+, Black, Indigenous, and POC. We wanted to offer bodywork and queer services to these communities that everyone on our board is a part of.
I think the best way to learn about our services and our story is through this 2023 OPB interview that Sami (our treasurer and project manager) and I did. Our organization is constantly shifting and growing to accommodate our community. Our current location is inside of Alder Commons, but we are looking for a new location to accommodate our growth!
If you were able to choose a parallel world to live in, what would that place be like? Feel free to go as magical or sci-fi as you want! I can dream up a million worlds all in one day, and my favorites that have been brought to the screen are hard to choose from. Most nights, I chat with a friend and we love to build worlds and roleplay like mini DnD [Dungeons and Dragons] games with our own characters. I think if I absolutely had to make a choice, there would have to be vampires, fae folk, werewolves, and dragons, oh my! I love all things mythical creatures and old Gods and Goddesses. It makes the world more fun to live in. It has to be full of adventure and radical love. The most mythical part of it would be humans living at peace with everyone, free from the harshness of our current world. able to choose a parallel world to live in, what would that place be like? Feel free to go as magical or sci-fi as you want!
As a participant in Disabled And Here’s T4T with Pride series, what does trans Pride mean to you? Pride to me is the courage to be yourself completely. It’s the courage to make the mistakes that are needed to learn who you are for yourself, and not be what society has forced on us. I didn’t start stepping into my own until I started beauty school and modeling and started shedding all of the excess self-doubt that lingered in my head. I started coloring my hair how I wanted and shaving my head once a year. It helped me really figure out that I was non-binary. Stepping into that truth in 2020 lifted such a big weight off of my shoulders. Every day I learn more about myself and strive to be the adult that my younger self needed. Pride means the world to me in this world that beats anyone who doesn’t fit into a box.
Final question: what are the best ways to support you as well as your work? Currently, the best way to support my work is to help support my living situation to keep me housed and to follow my modeling Instagram. I’m currently waiting on a hearing for SSDI and am behind on everything. My landlord has been really understanding, but I would like to give them some sort of payment if possible. If folks are willing to help, my Cash App, Venmo, and Instagram are all under NocturneParadox.
I am always open to do fun TFP shoots – I always have ideas for fun new shoots that you rarely see Black folks pictured in. There is one big project that I’m working on, but it is in early stages, so I can only say that you’ll have to wait and see!