Forward thinking through the past: LGBTQ+ artists and the history of art

To celebrate LGBTQ+ History Month, join Dr Tilly Scantlebury for a two-hour session that explores the connection between works from the National Gallery and trailblazing modern and contemporary artists.

Considering an array of artists in different mediums, such as Mickalene Thomas and Louise Bourgeois, the session asks why and how the history of art might be rethought and expanded upon. Drawing on feminist and queer methodologies and how they frame identity, this lecture will ask in what ways artists’ practices both use and update the history of art for decidedly new ends.

In the second half of the session, we turn to the work of contemporary American photographer Catherine Opie. Through key case studies and visual analysis, we will put her large format portraits in conversation with oil paintings by Hans Holbein the Younger found within the National Gallery’s collection.

Dr Tilly Scantlebury is an art historian and one of our Gallery Educators at the National Gallery. Since completing their doctorate in 2021, Tilly has been delivering outreach workshops to young people and adults, which widen access to art history. Alongside public programmes, Tilly also writes and delivers lectures in their research specialism of feminist, queer modern and contemporary art.

Can't make the session but don't want to miss out? No problem, you can watch again.

The session is recorded and made available to you for 2 weeks.

A video of the week's lecture will be uploaded and available for you to watch via your National Gallery account on Monday.

This is an online ticketed course hosted on Zoom. Please book a ticket to access the course.

Only one ticket can be booked per account.

You will be emailed an E-ticket with instructions on how to access the course via your National Gallery account. All course information including your Zoom link, weekly handouts, and recordings will be available here.