Queer Heritage and Collections Network launched
Training and peer support to be offered to UK museums
Art Fund has provided a grant to establish a UK-wide Queer Heritage and Collections Network to provide training, networking and peer support to people working with LGBTQ+ collections and histories.
The network is a partnership between the National Trust; English Heritage; Historic England; Historic Royal Palaces; and the Research Centre for Museums and Galleries (RCMG) at the University of Leicester.
The grant will be administered by the National Trust and overseen by a steering group made up of volunteer representatives from the five partners. Consultant Dan Vo has been appointed as project manager and lead researcher, with additional research and support being provided by Richard Sandell, director of the Research Centre for Museums and Galleries.
The network plans to consult with the sector to identify what support it can offer, and develop a programme of activities in response with an emphasis on regional needs.
“Art Fund is delighted to support the Queer Heritage and Collections Network a with a network grant, a programme which provides funding for curatorial and professional networks to share expertise for the benefit of collections and audiences,” says Rachael Browning, head of programme development at Art Fund.
“The Queer Heritage and Collections Network clearly meets a need for a formal network for LGBTQ+ heritage, to sustain and develop some of the excellent and vital work already led by groups such as Queer British Art and Museum Pride London, providing a new forum for knowledge exchange, training and collaboration.
“The founding members of the network bring a wealth of energy and knowledge, and we are confident that the network’s planned activities will hugely benefit heritage practitioners across the UK, helping them to work with LGBTQ+ themes and histories and to access support and expertise.”
The network will be free to join and is open to practitioners working on LGBTQ+ heritage and collections.
The network is a partnership between the National Trust; English Heritage; Historic England; Historic Royal Palaces; and the Research Centre for Museums and Galleries (RCMG) at the University of Leicester.
The grant will be administered by the National Trust and overseen by a steering group made up of volunteer representatives from the five partners. Consultant Dan Vo has been appointed as project manager and lead researcher, with additional research and support being provided by Richard Sandell, director of the Research Centre for Museums and Galleries.
The network plans to consult with the sector to identify what support it can offer, and develop a programme of activities in response with an emphasis on regional needs.
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a launch event for the network has been postponed until 2021 and activities such as workshops will be run digitally until further notice.
“Art Fund is delighted to support the Queer Heritage and Collections Network a with a network grant, a programme which provides funding for curatorial and professional networks to share expertise for the benefit of collections and audiences,” says Rachael Browning, head of programme development at Art Fund.
“The Queer Heritage and Collections Network clearly meets a need for a formal network for LGBTQ+ heritage, to sustain and develop some of the excellent and vital work already led by groups such as Queer British Art and Museum Pride London, providing a new forum for knowledge exchange, training and collaboration.
“The founding members of the network bring a wealth of energy and knowledge, and we are confident that the network’s planned activities will hugely benefit heritage practitioners across the UK, helping them to work with LGBTQ+ themes and histories and to access support and expertise.”
The network will be free to join and is open to practitioners working on LGBTQ+ heritage and collections.
Museums that want to be involved in the network can contact Vo via email d.vo@vam.ac.uk or Twitter @DanNouveau