The Queer Icons project, comprising an exhibition, a book, and wide-ranging public programs, results from a series of meetings that photographer Fin Serck-Hanssen and authors Bjørn Hatterud and Caroline Ugelstad Elnæs had with queer personas that have not only contributed to structure social and cultural foundations underpinning the Norwegian society we know today, but built a more complex and nuanced understanding of sexuality to prevent forms of conscious and unconscious discrimination coming from biased societal conservatism.
The project addresses the fight for freedom and equality leading to the repeal of Criminal Law 213 in 1972 for decriminalizing homosexuality in Norway by depicting the life stories of inspiring leading individuals who actively fought in the background and the foreground against prejudicial moral jurisdiction, eventually leading to a more liberated society. It celebrates the glam of life produced outside the norm through democratic demands, parties, and activism in historical Norwegian queer underground culture, including sequins, joy, and humor. The exhibition, which, in addition, has also been presented for schools of all ages in Norway, aims to support these unwritten stories to surface in majoritarian storytelling with a widespread reach.
The exhibition and its public programs have been produced and curated by the Fotogalleriet curatorial team. The exhibition is designed by Harald Lunde Helgesen, HAiKw/. The book, available in Norwegian, edited by Bente Riise and designed by Den Luca, is published by Pitch Forlag.
PUBLIC PROGRAMME
03.05.2024, 17-17:30
Performance by the artist and singer Nils Bech with the dancer Mathias Aas Stoltenberg [in English]
04.05.2024, 12-13
Conversation with the curators of the Queer Icons public programme, Miki Gebrelul and Håkon Lillegraven [in English]
04.05.2024, 13-13:30
Official ceremony and announcement of the Nordic PhotoBook Award winner [in English and in Italian]
11.05.2024, 18-19
Presentation by the writer Bjørn Hatterud [in English]
18.05.2024, 17-18
Guided tour of Queer Icons [in English and in Italian]
19.05.2024, 12-13
Guided tour of Queer Icons [in English and in Italian]
25.05.2024, 18-19
Book presentation My body is my queer archive with Tommaso Speretta. Introduction by prof. Alessio Ponzo
01.06.2024, 17-18
Guided tour of Queer Icons [in English and in Italian]
02.06.2024, 12-13
Guided tour of Queer Icons [in English and in Italian]