Earlier this year, LACMA's Educator Speaker Series explored LGBTQ+ creativity at a special virtual session that looked at works from the collections of LACMA and the One Institute, community partner to ONE Archives at USC Libraries, the largest collection of LGBTQ+ material in the world. During the talk, USC-Roski School of Art Design's Associate Professor Andy Campbell and elementary educator Skye Tooley discussed how queer communities have navigated oppression, liberation, and worldmaking through art and design, investigating works like Polly Apfelbaum’s 2006 series Flags of Revolt and Defiance and Claude Cahun’s I.O.U. (Self-Pride) (1929–30).

The talk also addressed how symbols such as the rainbow and trans pride flags have come to represent LGBTQ+ community and how they are emblematic of making and living outside of the lines of societal expectation, as well as discussed strategies for illuminating queer artists’ lives and works with the possibilities of DIY print and iterative media. 

This program was presented in collaboration with One Institute, which is the oldest active LGBTQ+ organization in the country. Through unique K–12 teacher training, lesson plans, and youth mentorship programs, One Institute empowers the next generation of teachers and students to bring queer history into classrooms and communities. LACMA’s Educator Speaker Series, meanwhile, invites K–12 teachers to present on crucial topics in art education that center on criticality and social justice. 

October is LGBT History Month, and we’re sharing the full talk below for educators and everyone else interested in queer history, art, and design.