Unicorn
When the new Perth Museum opened in 2024, the team chose to centre local LGBTQ+ stories and voices in its first exhibition, Unicorn. As part of an exploration of Scotland’s national animal, the exhibition focuses on the unicorn as an LGBTQ+ symbol.
Working in collaboration with community groups, the exhibition included five newly commissioned artworks by queer Scottish artists, local objects and oral histories, a queer-friendly family space and a rich engagement programme.
Unicorn has not only increased representation of LGBTQ+ communities in the museum’s displays but also in its collections by accessioning objects, artworks and oral histories generated through the exhibition.
The museum has embedded new staff training to ensure that it continues to be a welcoming and empowering place for queer workers and visitors alike.
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Unicorn has been a critical and commercial success and has created a safe, relevant and celebratory space for LGBTQ+ people in Perthshire. The exhibition attracted 10,000 visitors and generated £50,000 in ticket sales in the first four months, and it also enjoyed a five-star review from the Guardian newspaper.
Through Unicorn, Perth Museum has challenged the assumption that discursive, sector-leading work can only happen in big museums and cities.
Unicorn won the Championing Social Justice Award at the Museums Change Lives Awards 2024.
Community partner feedback
“We were delighted to be invited for involvement in the Unicorn project at Perth Museum. We were very excited to see it launch as part of the new museum’s opening in March 2024. It was a significant step forward in LGBTQ+ development in Perth and Kinross, and the exhibition was eye-catching and impactful.
“We truly value the joint approach when we work with LGBTQ+ groups and organisations across the region, and further around Scotland, and this collaborative approach has resulted in many positive steps for everyone involved.
“We certainly felt that Unicorn was one of these positives and it has really helped to further awareness and impact of LGBTQ+ matters. Plenty of evidence that our charity has equally become recognised as one for resources, support and community as a result.”
Matt Wester, board member and trustee for Rainbow Heartlands LGBTQ+, a local LGBTQ+ charity in Perth and Kinross