Minorities are not getting in the picture at art galleries and find themselves written out of history at museums.

Despite equality laws helping the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community making great strides elsewhere, most galleries and museums have done nothing to include them in exhibitions.

The claim was made by Richard Sandell, head of museum studies at the University of Leicester, to delegates at Nowhere to Hide, a session at the Museums Association conference in Brighton.

Sandell was discussing how equality laws oblige publicly-funded organisations to adequately represent groups like LGBTs.

He alleged many museums and galleries viewed telling LGBT stories as ‘risky’, even though recent shows were well supported.

“There’s a real possibility that the financial climate may inhibit museums on equality,” he said.

During the discussion, he told the conference even though groups were reticent to put on LGBT shows, more exhibitions representing their stories had opened in the past five years than the previous 50 years.

Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery curator artist Matt Smith, relayed his experiences of putting on ‘Queering the Museum’ last year.

“I focused on visual jokes, camp, double meanings, pathos and subterfuge,” he said. “People could find a trail throughout the museum. It was important that we didn’t have a gay exhibition off in a room to the side.”

Smith believes many museums and galleries have an excess of exhibits that have a LGBT link that could be exploited to tell a story.

Meanwhile, employment judge Joanna Wade told the conference that representing minorities is not just about sex but demonstrating the focus and commitment of an organisation to staff as well as the public.

“Having an enshrined commitment to equality could offer protection during employment tribunals and would also show funders that you’re the right kind of organisation to fund,” she said.

“I wish that sexual orientation was simply a normal and interesting part of a museum’s life. I wish people didn’t get scared that it was all about sex.”

This article is filed under retirement age abolished 65 years: , Legal, Leadership, Minorities, Equality Act 2010, equality strands, Protected charactersitcs, Role models

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