Simple, direct, and beautiful, Tamás Ábel’s Colour Therapy is a powerful statement of queer presence. In this performance, Ábel used a fabricated glass mirror to reflect the rainbow flag onto the Millennium Monument in his hometown of Budapest, Hungary, and the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., bringing his subtle and resonant protest to the spiritual heart of each nation. -Susie J. Silbert Image: Still from Colour Therapy, a film © Tamás Ábel 2019.7.8
Sometimes it can be difficult to identify LGBTQ+ artists. Long histories of exclusion, harassment, violence, and lack of legal protections have created an environment in which artists are not always free to publicly disclose their identities. Some artists who identify personally as LGBTQ+ do not feel that identity informs their work.
Even when an artist sees their work as directly related to their gender identity or sexual orientation, outside interpretations, such as museum and gallery labels or exhibition reviews, sometimes gloss over identity in favor of discussions of style, technique, or popular themes.
…Queer people have played important roles in the glass community since its inception, yet sexual orientation, gender expression, and non-normative identities are rarely, if ever, addressed in critical writing, reviews, bios, or exhibition themes.
…[Although] artists identify as queer and their chosen medium is glass, the artwork doesn't exclusively revolve around themes of queer identity. However... could viewing the critical aspects of an artwork through a queer lens broaden or deepen its dialog with the viewer? The material? Contemporary art? The glass context?
-Kim Harty, from the forward of Transparency
How can I find out more about LGBTQ+ glass artists?
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Articles, Blog Posts, and Exhibition Announcements
- Heller Gallery. “Collaborations with Queer Voices.” https://www.hellergallery.com/collaborations-with-queer-voices.
- Museum of Glass. "Transparency: An LGBTQ+ Glass Art Exhibition." https://www.museumofglass.org/transparency.
- “Plain Sight: Celebrating Pride in the Glass Community.” https://en-gb.facebook.com/events/pilchuck-glass-school-seattle-exhibition-space/plain-sight-celebrating-pride-in-the-glass-community/2163758413678078/.
- “Queer Glass : A Personal History | Washington Glass Studio,” June 3, 2019. http://washingtonglassschool.com/queer-glass-a-personal-history.
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Books
- Transparency : June 2017 /. Philadelphia, PA: National Liberty Museum, 2017.
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Videos
- The Gay Agenda: Glass Edition | Behind the Glass Lecture. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKUBVtivNMk. Note: Or, see the embedded video at bottom of page.
Where can I learn more about art, artists, and art movements that explore gender and sexuality?
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Books
- Anthonissen, Anton and Evert van Straaten. Queer!?: Visual Arts in Europe. Netherlands: Waanders BV, Uitgeverij, 2019.
- Campbell, Andy. Queer X Design: 50 Years of Signs, Symbols, Banners, Logos, and Graphic Art of LGBTQ. New York : Black Dog & Leventhal Publishers, 2019.
- Documents of Contemporary Art: Sexuality. London : Whitechapel Gallery, 2014.
- Lord, Catherine and Richard Myers. Art & Queer Culture. London : Phaidon, 2019.
- Summers, Claude J. The Queer Encyclopedia of the Visual Arts /. 1st ed. San Francisco: Cleis Press, 2004.
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Websites
- Art History Teaching Resources. “Queer Art: 1960s to the Present,” November 4, 2015. http://arthistoryteachingresources.org/lessons/queer-art-1960s-to-the-present/.
- “Pride Timeline: A History of Contemporary Queer Culture and Art | Christie’s.” https://www.christies.com/features/Pride-timeline-a-history-of-modern-queer-culture-and-art-11747-1.aspx.
- Queer Art History. “Queer Art History.” https://www.queerarthistory.com/.
- Tate. “Queer Lives and Art.” Tate. https://www.tate.org.uk/art/queer-lives-art.
- The Art Story. “Queer Art Movement Overview.” https://www.theartstory.org/movement/queer-art/.
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