Queer Art (Art Essentials)

'This book refreshed my perspective ... I was galvanised and reassured. Guided, taught and counselled. We make cool stuff. We always have. I'm full of thanks for it' Kae Tempest

'The most beautiful way to know ourselves better is to pick up and flick through the pages of this insightful collection of superb queer artists' Russell Tovey

'A cavalcade of queer sensibility. A long overdue gazetteer of those of us who find ourselves to be, to quote Arthur Marshall: "a little bit wonky"' Maggi Hambling

'Changing the game - champions artists and narratives that now feel firmly part of the canon' Katy Hessel

A concise, accessible and global overview of modern and contemporary queer art, co-written by notable curators in the field.

Queer Art is a commanding compendium of LGBTQIA+ art that highlights its ongoing resilience from the 19th century to the present day. Spanning generations and geographies, Queer Art's carefully curated selection of practitioners paints a rich picture of LGBTQIA+ visual culture, underscoring the complexity of lived experience and cutting through the basic understanding of the subject that seeks to measure 'queerness' against overt homoeroticism and proven homosexuality.

Queer art curators Mollie E. Barnes and Gemma Rolls-Bentley begin by exploring how resilience has shaped artistic expression, establishing the historical backdrop against which queer art has evolved. From liberation to intersectionality, reclamation to futurism, four thematic chapters unpack the key concerns of queer art as they relate to the work of artists such as Keith Haring, Bhupen Khakhar, Hélio Oiticica, Catherine Opie, Lotte Laserstein and Xiyadie.

By exploring the notion of 'queer art' through the lens of both historical figures and contemporary practitioners, Queer Art adopts a dual focus, traversing the past and present to reflect on covert histories whilst imagining radical futures in which art not only reflects but shapes social norms.

About the Author

Mollie E. Barnes is a curator, researcher and writer focused on equitable access and representation in the arts, working across contemporary visual culture. She is currently the Visual Arts Curator at Salisbury Cathedral. Gemma Rolls-Bentley is a writer and curator. She has curated internationally, including at ICA London, the Alice Austen House, New York, and the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Art, New York. She has taught at the Royal College of Art and Central Saint Martins, London.