Escape to The Last Threshold
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We're building a castle in a housing crisis.
You read that right! We're Az and Lou- the queer artist duo behind StarWhispers, Asunderland, and now Escape to The Last Threshold. We fled our countries of origin seeking safety, freedom to be together as ourselves, and our bigger dream of a sustainable, permanent creative refuge.
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Now, unsafe housing, immigration barriers, and medical fallout have forced us into a stacked situation we can't get out of without help. As transgender immigrants, we face added hurdles that make these setbacks hit much harder than they should.
With a little help, we can survive long enough to open the doors of a Storybook Inn.
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Want to help out another way? Visit ourTip Jar page for Paypal and Stripe options. And thank you. Truly.
Concept Art Gallery:
The Goal - Chapters 1 & 2
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Chapter 1 – $26,000 CAD
This goal covers immediate survival: emergency relocation, urgent medical bills, and legal costs tied to malpractice and housing injustice. Chapter 2 – $102,000 CAD total This goal covers the full mid-term medical costs from mold exposure and dental injury, a complete move into interim safe housing and essential legal costs for related malpractice and housing injustice cases. This amount also includes the costs associated with the immigration process, whether that process continues in Canada or we are forced to relocate again. Directly, this covers costs like:
Next Chapter: Transformation → purchase and theming of a Storybook Inn. |
Pictured: the basement closet of our rental.
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A few more details:
Costs we had no way of predicting have piled up to a point that we cannot unbury ourselves, such as; a newly implemented requirement of $19,000.00 in untouched savings in order to immigrate to Canada- an unprecedented imposition which was not in place when we initially planned to submit our applications. Landlords have repeatedly demanded a deposit of at least $14,000.00 (6+ months of rent) upfront, illegally, because of our immigrant status and lack of Canadian credit history- regardless of proof of income. (We are in a poor position to negotiate or enforce our rights as we have been turned away from even viewing properties due to our immigrant status, and landlords are known to look up tribunal/legal records of prospective tenants.) A dentist gave Trystan extensive dental injuries shortly after arriving in Canada. These have severely impacted his ability to work- work which his immigration depends upon entirely. These injuries will immediately cost at least $5,000.00 CAD in order to treat and avoid potentially life threatening infections, and tens of thousands more to fully treat, even in the short term. We are barred from healthcare access for a prolonged period due to the impacts of this on our work-related immigration path, keeping costs of even our daily medications for ADHD and our hormone therapy in the hundreds per month. These are just a few pieces of the pileup. Being able to make it through this rough patch and pay the associated legal costs opens much needed doors for us.
This is the foundation that allows us to begin what we’re really working toward: a permanent refuge and community art space, wherever we're able to build it, documented and shared through our show. That's the next chapter for us. |
Pictured: Medical imaging of a section of Trystan's teeth with several areas circled in red, and text that reads: "various emergencies- all from things like "Defective restorations!" Note: Some of these pictured restorations have already been re-treated, however these defective restorations span Trystan's entire mouth. And the "sinus spike," pictured remains permanently embedded in his maxillary sinuses from the ordeal, causing ongoing medical issues yet to be fully understood.)
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Above: "Founder's Garden Stone" concept by Trystan
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The VisionHelp to secure our immediate safety, and you also help seed a lasting refuge for queer art and community.
As immigrants, we can’t legally buy residential property- even with valid visas. However, we can purchase a commercial property. The Living Storybook Inn immediately provides both permanent housing and validation for our only viable immigration path, which demonstrates the themed design skills we’ve spent years developing. Roleplay events, weddings, artist residencies, educational or cultural workshops- and a home that nobody can take away. It's a queer-led fairytale retreat, an inn, a refuge, a photo/film studio and community site rolled into one obsessively themed space. And every supporter becomes part of the lore- literally. Supporter names become Founder's Runes, which are physically incorporated into whatever space we settle on. Like a gigantic protective spell hidden in plain sight, sprawled across the property. |
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A Founder’s Rune at the future property is your name and chosen rune, permanently carved, burned, sculpted or otherwise incorporated physically into a real space of the refuge itself. When you give to the fundraiser, or one of our Patreons, you'll get a link to a form where you can give your details.
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Video: A clip from the first episode of The Last Threshold, in which Trystan talks about the vision for this space- wherever it may be.
Pictured: "Founder's Garden Stone" concept by Lou.
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Other Ways To Help
- Shop Our Art, Downloads & Merchandise:
- If you prefer to support by getting some treasures in return for bolstering our business, visit our online storefronts. We offer art prints, zines, and creative merch that we've designed based on a multiverse of stories here on starwhispers.co. Every purchase puts funds back into the project, and also gives our stores an algorithmic boost. You’ll be collecting a piece of this journey while directly supporting our future. Double thank-you!
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- Join Patreon For The Long Haul
- Time-starved but care about the cause? Even as a free member, you become part of the community forming around this refuge – no financial commitment required, just solidarity and awareness.
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