The exhibition Very Private? marked a turning point in the profile and identity of the Charleston Trust. Acting like a coming out, this first public display of Duncan Grant’s sexually explicit imagery, challenged both the artist’s and the Trust’s identity, championing and celebrating queer identity and creativity. The exhibition opened alongside a new multimedia installation by artist Linder, Linder: A Dream Between Sleeping and Waking, responding to both the history of Charleston and Grant’s work.

Join Linder Sterling for a round table discussion alongside Dr Darren Clarke, Head of collections and research, and Samson Dittrich, University of Sussex, the Charleston Trust. This event will be co-chaired and is organised by Dr Camilla Smith, Project-Lead, ‘Unruly Objects’ and Head of Art History, Curating and Visual Studies, and Prof Jennifer Powell, Director of the Barber Institute of Fine Arts at the University of Birmingham.

The discussion will reflect on the exhibitions' intentions to bring Grant's erotic works in conversation with contemporary queer and Black queer perspectives. It will consider Very Private? as a case study for arts institutions grappling with their own queer past. The discussion will explore how artworks engage with desire more broadly, and consider some of the complexities artists may encounter when exhibiting work of an explicit nature.

The content of this talk and supporting imagery considers explicit imagery, sex, identity and gender perspectives. This free event is open to all – students and staff and members of the public. For event enquiries, please contact Dr Camilla Smith - H.C.Smith@bham.ac.uk.