StarTrek.com resident artist Rob DeHart talks queer representation in Star Trek

Star Trek-themed illustrations by Rob DeHart

JUNE 29, 2021 - As Pride Month draws to a close, StarTrek.com sat down for a conversation with their resident artist Rob DeHart to discuss his observations on queer representation in Star Trek, as well as his new collection in the Star Trek store featuring designs that celebrate fandom and the LGBTQ+ community.

While the latest generation of Trek shows feature characters who are openly gay, non-binary and trans, in the interview DeHart also points out subtextual themes of queer representation in older series that speak powerfully to him.

“I think one of my favorite things when it comes to representation would be the Trill species,” he says, “[…] because they don't put limits on the hosts. Whenever a symbiont is attached to a host, they become something new […] The idea in the story is of gender fluidity and same-sex relation and just general openness when it comes to acceptance.”

DeHart, who points to Voyager as his “first contact” with the franchise, also sees subtext in Seven of Nine’s character during that series, a subtext which has come to the surface now in Star Trek: Picard. “When you watch it the first time, you don't think about it,” he shared, “but then when you go back and you watch and observe and you pay more attention, you're like ‘I see [it].’” He points to a similar subtext with Bashir and Garak on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, adding, “It makes you feel seen a little bit, even if it's not explicitly stated.”

The Star Trek store says this of DeHart’s new collection: “From the Ambassadors of Queer Adult Short Sleeve T-Shirt to the Warp Speed Proud Phone Case, this collection has something for every Star Trek fan.” You can check it out at shop.startrek.com, and you can see more art by Rob DeHart on his website, at robdehart.com.