Daniella Read ART416

Is there enough LBGTQIA+ representation within the arts for our

young LGBTQIA+ people? A critique of the ‘Seen’ exhibition at The
Exchange, Penzance, 2021.

In November 2021, I visited The Exchange in Penzance to view their exhibition,

‘Seen’, ‘co-curated by young LGBTQIA+ people (aged 11-19) in partnership with

Intercom Trust, and SHARP, programme producer.’ (Seen, n.d.) This is the largest

exhibition that I have seen of solely LGBTQIA+ artists in the county of Cornwall,

where ‘25% of the population is now aged over 65.’ (Richard Whitehouse, 2019)

Representation is so crucial for our young LGBTQIA+ folks and I do believe it isn’t

spoken about nearly as much as it needs to be. For example, when I visited the

exhibition to buy a ticket, I overheard the lady sitting at the desk speaking to a

customer, saying that she had ‘never heard of LGBTQIA+ before’, which was

astounding to me because I grew up in a time where our society was expanding

every day and that this was a common thing. After visiting the exhibition, I was left

questioning why I’d never seen anything like this and what impact it would’ve had on

my 15/16-year-old self.

For a building of the size of The Exchange, the exhibition

was far bigger than I had imagined it to be. It was held in

an almost T-shaped room and had a vast quantity of

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different types of artworks across the walls. The theme was evident as soon as you

walked in, due to the LGBT pride flag that was draped across the main ceiling, lit with

spotlights behind it. It was a celebration of LGBTQIA+ people as a whole and

representation within the arts. As fun as the exhibition looked, it didn’t lack content

in terms of informing people about sexuality and how

important representation is for people of all genders

and sexualities; therefore, allowing people to create a

platform for voices to be heard and for them to feel, and

be, seen.

The work was displayed at chest height on the walls throughout the exhibition,

evenly spaced, and was visually satisfying to look at, however towards the end of the

room the larger sized work did seem to be a bit cramped, and I personally think it

would’ve been complimented better on a bigger wall to allow the work a bit more

breathing room. There were several different tv’s with video recordings playing out

loud, and again in the top section of the room there was a curtained off area with a

projection of Patrick Staffs “The Prince of Homburg” 2019 shone onto a red wall.

Upon walking around the exhibition, I noticed that more of the well-known artists

seemed to have all their work displayed together, for example, David Hockney,
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Wolfgang Tillsman, Francis Bacon and Maggi Hambling were all artists I recognised

and were all displayed in the same area of the room. Most the work was displayed

underneath white light spotlights and the whole main room had this sort of rainbow

glow to it due to the pride flag draped across the ceiling. This created a very calm

and quiet atmosphere which immediately made me feel quite safe and relaxed.

“We Two Boys Together Clinging” David

Hockney, 1961

One of the main pieces of work that I had wanted to see was David Hockney’s piece

“We Two Boys Together Clinging” 1961, as when I think of Hockney I think of his

traditional work that most people are familiar with, for example, “A Bigger Splash”

1967, or “Portrait of an Artist” 1972. However, the piece forementioned isn’t

produced in the same neat, almost graphic style as his other work, it is seemingly
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messy and childlike. This piece is, in my opinion, an integral part of this exhibition as

it was created during a time where homosexuality was illegal in the UK and was

based on a poem by 19th century American poet, Walt Whitman. This poem was titled

“We Two Boys Together Clinging” and has a double meaning behind it. Some

scholars refer to it as ‘a poem of homosexual love’ while others believe it is about

‘the brotherhood between two young men, forged by the experiences of war’. (We

Two Boys Together Clinging, n.d.). In this instance, the first context makes more

sense as Hockney is a member of the LGBTQIA+ community and this would provide

strong relevance and inspiration sources for his work. It is said that ‘Hockney clearly

identified with him (Whitman)’ (Blake Morrison, 2014) which, after research, would

be an educated guess that shows that even more well-known homosexual people

begin somewhere when it comes to their identity and acceptance of their sexuality.

This could come as a comfort to any ‘closeted’ viewers as it conveys the idea that its

perfectly normal to have other people to identify with when exploring your

sexuality, everyone starts somewhere. However, this context wasn’t included within

the exhibition and background research was needed in order to learn this, which

some people may not have access to, and so, in my opinion, I think that this

exhibition needed a little more context alongside the works to explain to the
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viewers how these artists can be used to represent them and allow them to be

comfortable with their sexuality.

Another purpose behind this exhibition was to ensure that it

“Increases young LGBTQIA+ people’s engagement within contemporary art, allows

them to create a platform that speaks to them, for new voices to be heard and for

them to be seen” (Seen, n.d.)

And I believe that the curators were successful in achieving most, if not all, of these

proposed ideas. For example, you are greeted by a large open space upon entering

the exhibition and a body of writing that introduces the viewer to the exhibition, to

provide a little context behind the exhibition itself. The large open space presents

physical and metaphorical space for the viewer to take in their surroundings and

accept that this is a safe space. There was also a noticeboard upon which

confidential helplines, help and support posters and a further selection of support

groups for young LGBTQIA+ people in case they need it, showing us that the

curators have used their platform to help others and allow them to feel accepted.

In addition to this, there were different types of seating arrangements to cater for

all types of people. Though it may seem trivial to some, these aspects are so crucial
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when it comes to creating a safe and comfortable environment for people who may

be feeling vulnerable or less confident than those who are considered “out of the

closet”. These seating arrangements consisted of several benches dotted around

the exhibition, a corner with beanbags and a bookshelf with books about pride and

coming out, standard chairs and then more bean bags placed in the top end of the

room where there was a projection on the wall. You can tell from these design

aspects that this was well considered and that the curators were focused on

creating a space that was comfortable and safe for all.

Furthermore, the lighting in the exhibition was successful as it provided a warm sort

of ambience to the room that ultimately leaves the viewer feeling relaxed.

Though, when it came to the arrangement of the art, I was left feeling a bit confused.

As I’ve previously mentioned, a lot of the well-known artists works were all placed
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together in the top end of the room. Many of these works were large scale pieces

and I understand that they may have been placed here as the space complimented

them better, however it did seem to create a divide within the selection of art works

chosen which broke up the natural journey that a viewer may take when visiting an

exhibition. For me personally, I did find the top end of the room to be more visually

interesting as there wasn’t as much negative space on the walls, the walls were

painted pink and yellow, and it was easier to follow the artwork around the room;

but this could be a personal matter as I was left feeling relatively lost in the open

space of the first part of the room, and I’m sure other people could have been

sensitive to this too.

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Despite this, the elements of this exhibition resulted in a very informative, yet

comfortable experience that I would deem a safe space for all to discover

representation of successful LGBTQIA+ people, providing inspiration to the

younger members of the community and portraying the message that your sexuality

should never be a hinderance to your success in life.

The initial description of this exhibition interested me as it stated it was co-curated

by young LGBTQIA+ people alongside charities, and I had wanted to see how the

young people were involved. Yet, I felt that it was lacking in this. There was a space

on the wall for personal artwork to be displayed by this select group, but there was

little to no context alongside it. I was interested to hear what this exhibition had

meant to them and how/if they will use their platform moving forward.

I did wonder about the social and cultural implications of this exhibition as Cornwall

is still relatively sheltered and slow with progress in comparison to the rest of the

UK, mainly since a lot of the residents are elderly people who are living out their

retirement and a large portion of them could still have very traditional views when it

comes to homosexuality and its branches. I know from my own experiences that this

exhibition could be misunderstood by less informed people who may believe that
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the LGBTQIA+ community might be trying to force their beliefs onto them. I also

feel that the ages of the young people chosen to co-curate this exhibition may pose

an implication that the general public may disagree with. A common thing in this

society now is the notion that people aren’t old enough to know their sexuality or

how they may present themselves, which is a very outdated view. I still think that

children and young adults aren’t taken seriously enough because of their elder’s

views on sexuality and gender identity. Often, we hear about children coming out as

transgender, and a lot of societies’ reaction is that this person is too young to know

what they are or aren’t, however when it is looked at from an opposing view that this

person is automatically assigned their gender at birth and it is automatically

assumed that they would be heterosexual, because it’s “the norm”, it creates a

debate. Despite this, I believe that the inclusion of much younger LGBTQIA+ people

was vital for this exhibition as it widens the narrative upon which the decisions are

made, providing more insight into younger LGBTQIA+ minds.

Nevertheless, the younger generation in Cornwall are connecting with each other

over their future and trying to make the county a more accepting place for people

of minorities; using their platform to create a movement and to make a stand; and

this exhibition is a prime example of that. It communicates the idea that sexuality
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shouldn’t hold you back from achievements, it is simply a part of who you are and

whether you choose to let it define you is ultimately down to you at the end of the

day.

Word count: 1861

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Bibliography

Morrison, B (2014) David Hockney: the poets that make me paint. [online] Available

at: https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/jan/24/david-hockney-poets-

paint-blake-morrison [Accessed 19 Jan. 2022]

Seen, (n.d. para 1, line 4-6) [online] Available at:

https://newlynartgallery.co.uk/activities/seen/ [Accessed 19 Jan. 2022]

We Two Boys Together Clinging, (n.d., para. 2 line 1-4) [online] Available at:

https://www.encyclopedia.com/social-sciences/educational-magazines/we-two-

boys-together-clinging [Accessed 20 Jan. 2022]

Whitehouse, R (2019) Cornwall is getting old and doesn’t have enough houses for its

ageing population. [online] Available at:

https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/cornwall-getting-old-doesnt-

enough-3500478 [Accessed 20 Jan. 22]