BERT AND ERNIES' MOMENT OF JOY

Bert and Ernie’s Moment of Joy (2013) was used on the cover of the New Yorker after the U.S. Supreme Court got rid of the law barring federal recognition of same-sex marriage and recognised marriage as a fundamental right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution. In 2004, the UK Civil Partnership Act was passed and came into effect in December 2005. It created civil partnerships, which gave same-sex couples who entered into them the same rights and responsibilities of marriage. From 2014, any couple registered in a civil partnership was granted the right to convert that partnership into a marriage.

The image reminds us of the lack of role models to help children and young teenagers reconcile their feelings and emotions, and to respect difference and diversity in others.

– Dr. Néstor Valero-Silva

DUVET OF LOVE

By David Shenton (1990s), Norwich Castle Museum

When artist, illustrator and cartoonist David Shenton decided to display his huge personal collection of lapel badges as a mosaic of two gay lovers, laid out on a double-bed duvet cover, he created an autobiographical narrative, a social history of England from the 1950s to the 1990s, a record of collective involvement in the movement for gay rights, and a memorial to all the people we lost to the AIDS epidemic.

– Professor Gregory Woods

HIBISCUS FLOWER

By William Bruce Ellis Ranken (1922), Nottingham City Museums & Galleries’ Collection 

Ranken was an Edwardian aesthete known for his sumptuous interiors and elegant portraits of society figures. This painting draws on the tradition of Orientalist paintings of women in harems favoured by European artists in the 19th century. They created a romanticised Western fantasy of the exotic ‘East’.

It is perhaps unusual to see a painting of that time and of this scale celebrating male beauty in such a forthright and unabashed way. The hibiscus flower symbolised delicate beauty. The painting is quite revealing about the artist himself: it celebrates male beauty but also the male gaze.

– Louise Dunning, Keeper of Art, Nottingham City Museums

I WANT A DYKE FOR PRESIDENT

One of my fav poems and especially pertinent just after Biden's inauguration. Love this. Was installed on The High Line to affront people on their dog walks.

– Ashley Gallant

UNTITLED (BILLBOARD OF AN EMPTY BED)

By Felix Gonzalez-Torres (1991), The Felix Gonzalez-Torres Foundation

I love this because as a gay man I have never been particularly interested in pride or gay history or being gay really. It's not something that defines me, it's not something I think about, it's something I do and live, and this work chimes with that, its private and quiet, and the empty bed represents the loss of the artists boyfriend. It kind of makes public the most private side of loss.

– Ashley Gallant

SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI IN ECSTASY

By Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio (1594–1595), Wadsworth Atheneum, Hartford, Connecticut Collection

– Ruth

THE BALLAD OF SEXUAL DEPENDENCY

By Nan Goldin (1985)

The Ballad of Sexual Dependency by photographer Nan Goldin, is a filmic slideshow depicting an extraordinary array of intimate and emotive moments from Goldin's life in 1970s and 80s New York. I first saw this exhibition in the summer of 2019 at the Tate Modern, London where it was on display. I was instantly captivated by the intriguing and diverse subjects that were being portrayed; from the depiction of colourful drag queens, to lovers sharing a kiss, to a man suffering from HIV, Goldin introduced pioneering themes that both celebrate and bring to light the hardships within the LGBTQ+ community.

I chose this particular work as it is a beautiful reflection of the realities faced by the LGBTQ+ community and archival documentaries such as this, educate viewers on the community's history using real faces and real moments ultimately creating an impact that remains everlasting.

– Esosia Aiworo

TRANSPHOBIA BUTTERFLY

By Henry James Garrett (2020) 

The work has been featured with an organisation called Gendered Intelligence and it is important to me because it represents the support for transgender people.

– Zach Omitowoju

LA OFRENDA

By Saturnino Herran (1913), Museo Nacional de Arte, Mexico

– Anon

PICCADILLY CIRCUS

London, June 2020, courtesy of Queer China UK

The 2020 Pride Month was unusually quiet because of the global coronavirus pandemic. A giant screen at Piccadilly Circus in Central London showed pictures of some Chinese students celebrating the Pride from the previous year. In recent years, an increasing number of Chinese students have come to the UK to study and work. Many are LGBTQ+ identified and they celebrate their gender and sexual differences here in a way that they cannot in China.

– Hongwei Bao, University of Nottingham

PHOTOGRAPH I

By Shoog McDaniel (2019), Bodies Like Oceans

This photograph, and collection as a whole, resonates with me as I felt truly represented and seen in art. I have struggled with my gender and sexual identity, seeing queer art was invaluable in my journey. It is so important to portray queer love and marginalised bodies; not only to normalize but celebrate them.

As a self-identified fat queer artist, they showcase the beauty of queerness and fatness, which is underrepresented in media. These identities intersect to make beautiful and meaningful photos This artwork pushes through barriers to highlight the marginalised narratives. Seeing this meant a lot for my self-acceptance.

AM I?, I AM

By Showna Kim (2018), Europäische Kulturtage 2018: Open Borders BBK of Karlsruhe curated by HfG-Alumna Lisa Bergmann, Changings, Awakenings: Equal Rights for All, BEZIRKSVERBAND BILDENDER KUNSTL ERINNEN, Orgelfabrik Durlach, Karlsruhe, Germany

The work AM I?, I AM deals with social views of homosexuality in South Korea, namely the negative views perpetuated by the public protests of conservative Christian groups who have rather visibly spoken out against the LGBTQ+ community. The text on the posters comes from messages collected from the protesters’ signboards and documentary films, which have been graphically re-assembled together.

South Korea is incredibly conservative when it comes to LGBTQ+ issues. The nation does not offer legal protection for LGBTQ+ citizens, who are considered second class. In addition to the lack of legal protection, LGBTQ+ individuals experience rejection and isolation from family, workplace, neighbourhood, and society in general.

– Showna Kim

THE BALLAD OF SEXUAL DEPENDENCY

By Nan Goldin (1985)

The Ballad of Sexual Dependency by photographer Nan Goldin, is a filmic slideshow depicting an extraordinary array of intimate and emotive moments from Goldin's life in 1970s and 80s New York. I first saw this exhibition in the summer of 2019 at the Tate Modern, London where it was on display. I was instantly captivated by the intriguing and diverse subjects that were being portrayed; from the depiction of colourful drag queens, to lovers sharing a kiss, to a man suffering from HIV, Goldin introduced pioneering themes that both celebrate and bring to light the hardships within the LGBTQ+ community.

I chose this particular work as it is a beautiful reflection of the realities faced by the LGBTQ+ community and archival documentaries such as this, educate viewers on the community's history using real faces and real moments ultimately creating an impact that remains everlasting.

– Esosia Aiworo

THE BALLAD OF SEXUAL DEPENDENCY

By Nan Goldin (1985)

The Ballad of Sexual Dependency by photographer Nan Goldin, is a filmic slideshow depicting an extraordinary array of intimate and emotive moments from Goldin's life in 1970s and 80s New York. I first saw this exhibition in the summer of 2019 at the Tate Modern, London where it was on display. I was instantly captivated by the intriguing and diverse subjects that were being portrayed; from the depiction of colourful drag queens, to lovers sharing a kiss, to a man suffering from HIV, Goldin introduced pioneering themes that both celebrate and bring to light the hardships within the LGBTQ+ community.

I chose this particular work as it is a beautiful reflection of the realities faced by the LGBTQ+ community and archival documentaries such as this, educate viewers on the community's history using real faces and real moments ultimately creating an impact that remains everlasting.

– Esosia Aiworo

UNTITLED (PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN AT 'TRANSPARENT LOVE' EXHIBITION)

This photo has special meaning as we were in London for the exhibition of Transparent Love by Amanda Searle, opening at the BFI. My trans daughter and I featured in one of the photos. We also visited The Tate and my daughter was really taken by Degas' Little Dancer of Fourteen Years. My daughter was 10 at the time and in a Metro article about the featured photographs, she was quoted “I know who I am and you can’t stop that”. It was a special day.

– monaghanoonagh

LAID BARE

By Lucy Finch (undated)

This is my submission for #MuseumOuting21 is called Laid Bare and created by myself. My name is Lucy Finch and I'm a novice painter living in Nottingham. Why I chose this piece. I created it when I wasn't fully out as a queer woman, it was a reflection on my experience of the mask I wore to hide this part of myself and the peace I longed for when I could finally take it off. Coming out and feeling comfortable in my sexuality is an ongoing journey for me, I still hope to find this sense of peace.

I chose this particular work as it is a beautiful reflection of the realities faced by the LGBTQ+ community and archival documentaries such as this, educate viewers on the community's history using real faces and real moments ultimately creating an impact that remains everlasting.

– Lucy Finch

IN THE RIVER JAMUNA

By Bhupen Khakhar (1992)

I am so excited that the @uniofnottingham and @lakesidearts are running #MuseumOuting21 for #LGBTHistoryMonth2021! My pick is this work of art, In the River Jamuna by Bhupen Khakhar. I saw it during the touring exhibition of Desire Love Identity when it was based at the @justicemuseum (loaned from the British Museum), and it reminded me that #Queerness and #LGBTLove is part and parcel of my own #SouthAsian #History.

Too often, we view queerness as a Western construct, and this is absolutely not true. It is empowering to reclaim my authentic past. Cheeky self-promo: I creatively reflected on this history as part of the book Desire, Love, Identity published in 2019.

– ibtisam1705