Claude Cahun, an artist often associated with the Surrealist movement who played constantly with gender in her work, also dies in 1954. She was extremely open about her sexuality and had multiple affairs with women while at the same time challenging gender stereotypes in her life and work.
Despite having married Diego Rivera twice, Kahlo is an important figure for queer art history. This enables her to receive a new birth certificate and be officially recognised as a woman.Īrtist Robert Rauschenberg divorces his wife and has a brief fling with Cy Twombly before embarking on a relationship with his long-term collaborator Jasper Johns, which would last until 1961.įrida Kahlo dies at the age of 47.
Roberta Cowell becomes the first (known) British trans woman to undergo sex reassignment surgery. Gay rights activist Harry Hay establishes America’s first national gay rights organisation, calling it the Mattachine Society. Here we take a look at the last 70 years of queer history and the artists who helped shape it. From Stonewall to Ballrooms, Rauschenberg to RuPaul, the LGBTQ+ community has always played an important role in contemporary art.
