Francesca Lam-March

The Social Exclusion of the Male Homosexual Community within Local Museums

Contents

1. Introduction p.3

2. The Hidden History of (Male) Homosexuality p.4

3. Prick Up Your Ears: The Extent of Homosexual Inclusion in Local Museums p.8

4. Kenneth Halliwell 1926-1967: Orphan, Balding, Homosexual, Failure, Murderer p.12

5. Conclusion p.17

6. Bibliography p.18

7. Appendix, Table 1 – [LGBT Email Correspondence Table] p.20

8. Appendix, Table 2 – [Gay Demographics] p.25

9. Appendix, Table 3 – [Social Media Survey] p.26

10. Appendix, Table 4 – [Raw Data] p.29

11. Appendix, Table 5 – [Age] p.30

12. Appendix, Table 6 – [Gender and Sexuality] p.30

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13. Appendix 1 – [Examples of Defaced Books] p.31

14. Appendix 2 – [Examples of K. Halliwell’s Collages] p.34

15. Appendix 3 – [Questionnaire Design] p.35

16. Appendix 4 – [London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard Interpretation Plan] p.36

Work Placement Project: The Social Exclusion of

the Male Homosexual Community within Local

Museums

Introduction

The aim of this project is to assess the representation of the

homosexual community in local museums. This has been done

through three different mediums. The first section of this

essay explains a brief history of male homosexuality. This is

followed by a short discussion of Michel Foucault’s The History of

Sexuality which is a historiographical perspective of

homosexuality. The second section assesses homosexuality from

a museum perspective, and questions the extent that museums

have been willing to actively accept homosexual objects into

their remits and to display them. This will be done through

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looking at studies before, and my own studies after, the

repeal of the Section 28 Act. In the third section I have

conducted a case study of visitor’s reactions to the 2014

Kenneth Halliwell Exhibition at Islington Museum. Kenneth

Halliwell was a homosexual collagist in the 1950s and 60s. The

case study will focus mainly on how the visitors felt towards

visiting an art exhibition in which sexuality is a prominent

context. I will then conclude this by explaining the

implications of my finds for the future of the representation

of the gay community in local museums.

The Hidden History of (Male) Homosexuality

The term ‘homosexual’ is a

relatively new label compared with

the history of intercourse between

members of the same sex. Same sex

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intercourse has not been socially accepted since antiquity.

Ancient Greek society accepted the act of same sex

intercourse; however even this level of ‘acceptance’ was not

without restrictions. Same sex love was limited to elite men,

one of whom had to be older, which they named Erastēs. The

other participant was required to be younger, named Eromenōs.1

A sexual relationship between two older men was frowned upon.2

The Erastēs and Eromenōs had to conform to the etiquette

surrounding the courting process.3 Contemporary literature such

as Homer’s Iliad includes references to homosexual love.

Achilleus and Patroklus (Achilleus the elder partner and

Patroklus the younger) shared an emotional bond as well as the

one they shared on the battlefield. The relationship between

same sex male partners has been depicted on archaeological

artefacts, thus demonstrating that sexual relations between

two men was a social norm for the Ancient Greeks. The Erastēs

and Eromenōs relationship was part of a cycle, with the

Eromenōs eventually settling down with a wife and having

children, subsequently becoming an Erastēs himself. This

illustrates that homosexuality was only partially accepted in

a certain kind of man’s life, as long as it did not detract

from his patriarchal duties.

The conversion of Emperor Constantine from Roman Paganism to

Christianity meant that from 312 AD the Roman Empire was

officially Christianised. With the social change from the

1 Peakman, Julie, The Pleasure’s All Mine A History of Perverse Sex, Reaktion Book Ltd, 2013, p.762 Ibid p.783 Ibid p.78

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Classical Gods to Christianity, homosexual tendencies started

to be viewed as moral and religious crimes, and the partaking

in such behaviour was forbidden. The Bible proclaimed that: “If

a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have

committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death;

their blood is upon them.”4 This introduced the term sodomite,

derived from the term Sodomy, now meaning anal intercourse,

which at this time had a much broader definition including

other types of intercourse not condoned by the church such as

bestiality and buggery. Works such as St Peter Damian’s Book of

Gomorrah detail this, in which Damien arguments display the

more extreme view of the populace in medieval Europe. The

Church used the sin of ‘sodomy’ as a tool for eradicating

their enemies, for example, the Templar Knights were executed,

amongst accusations of blasphemy, under suspicion of “obscene

kissing and homosexuality”. 5 For homosexuality to be used for

the purpose of the persecution of enemies of the church, it

must have been widely accepted as a sin in medieval society.

Legislation against homosexual sodomy in the Early Modern

period intensified, requiring most convicted sodomites to be

executed through burning or mutilation.6 For example, it became

a capital offence in England in 1533. According to Katherine

Crawford the main anxiety over sodomy was not from a heretical

view point, but rather the continuation of the population was

4 The Bible, Leviticus, 20:135 Malcolm Barber, The Trial of the Templars, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1978, p. 1786 Crawford, Katherine, European Sexualities 1400 – 1800, Cambridge University Press, 2007, p.156

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threatened by the “wasted seed” of sodomites.7 Furthermore, the

conspiracies, concocted at the time, that monarchs such as

James 1st of England and 6th of Scotland, and William the 1st,

partook in same sex relationships is evidence that sodomy was

seen as an affliction that affected everyone including

monarchs, this is evidence that same sex relationships were

still occurring.8

Sodomy remained a crime until the end of the 19th century. Two

sensational trials of suspected sodomites raised the profile

of the illegality of same sex relationships. The first, in

1870, saw Frederick Park and Ernest Boulton, known to their

friends as ‘Fanny’ and ‘Stella’, arrested on the Strand on a

trip to the theatre.9 Park and Boulton were arrested for

wearing women’s clothes. However, the lack of a law in Britain

preventing such behaviour meant that nothing came of the

trial. Second was the trial of Oscar Wilde, the popular poet

and playwright: Wilde was found guilty of gross indecency in

1895. The sensationalism of this case sparked a wider

discussion amongst members of society on the topic of sodomy,

and a wider public knowledge of sodomy.10 New debates developed

as to whether sodomites were victims of vice or if they

suffered from a mental affliction.11

7 Ibid p.2338 Hattersley, Michael, The Queere Kingship of James I, Harvard Gay & Lesbian Review, Vol 6 No 4, p. 209 Peakman, Julie, The Pleasure’s All Mine A History of Perverse Sex, Reaktion Book Ltd, 2013, p.9610 Ibid p.9711 Ibid p.97

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The term ‘homosexual’ was coined by Karl-Maria Kertbeny in

1869 and was used commonly by the turn of the 19th and 20th

century. ‘Sexology’ was a studied subject and supposedly

revolutionary cures began to be tested on homosexuals. From

the beginning of the 20th century urinals were used for

homosexual men to solicit each other, going on to later become

a somewhat infamous icon of pre-liberation homosexuality.

Homosexual hotspots sprang up all over London, with Soho as a

surviving predominantly gay area. In soho a ‘camp’ language

known as ‘Polari’ allowed men to speak freely of their

sexuality. During the 1920s and 30s the term ‘queer’ came into

popular use, the term’s agenda and meaning have been debated

ever since. There was wide spread anti-homosexual sentiment

and it was not until the 60s that this began to diminish. From

the 60s onwards homosexuals were becoming a part of popular

culture. The Sexual Offences Act (1967) decriminalised sex

between two men in private over the age of 21. This was

reduced to 18 in 1994 by the Criminal Justice Public Order

Act, and then finally to 16 in the Sexual Offences Amendment

Act (2000) thus equalising the age of consent with

heterosexuals.

One of the earliest homosexual theorists is Karl Heinrich

Ulrichs who, in a series of books published between 1864 -

1879,encouraged people to think of homosexuality as a norm.12

Ulrichs has proved to be somewhat of an anomaly of his time.

Since Ulrichs there has been a lull in published homosexual

historiography making it still relatively un-researched

12 Ibid p.98

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historical territory. The left-wing politics of the 1980s

brought in new historical trends such as ‘gender history’ and

‘history from below’.13 It is in the area covering the peoples’

history that gay history could, and should, be included.

Looking at marginalised sections of society allows historians

to understand the structure of society, and therefore

broadening our understanding of the society.14 This suggests

that perhaps it would be beneficial for historians to conduct

more detailed studies on LGBT related topics. Writing in the

1970s just after Gay Liberation in England, Michel Foucault

was one of the leading historians of homosexual

historiography, publishing The History of Sexuality which had three

volumes. Foucault, like Ulrichs, thought of homosexuality as a

social norm, not as the criminal “utterly confused category”

that contemporary society perceived it as.15 Foucault suggests

that society did not see homosexuality as a norm as it was

still influenced by the Victorian era. Foucault argues that

Victorian opinion on homosexual behaviour was shaped by the

heterosexual male elite who deemed sexual practice of any

kind, let alone homosexuality, to be a taboo subject that

should be locked safely in the bedroom; the hiding place of

all things deemed to be perverse.16 The Victorians made the

homosexual into a “species”, creating homosexuals as the

inverse of the masculine and branding everything about

13 Tosh, John, The Persuit of History Aims, Methods & New Directions In The Study of Modern History 2nd Ed, Longman, 1991, p.9814 Ibid p.10215 Foucault, Michel, The Will to Knowledge The History of Sexuality:1, Penguine Books, 1998, p.10116 Ibid p.48

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homosexuals with the unnatural stigma of homosexuality.17

During the 1970s when Foucault was writing, there was an

explosion of unorthodox sexuality that did not abide with the

law, making alternative types of sexuality more available to

society. He describes homosexuality as polyvalent and heavily

influenced by power, therefore, for society to change its

views on homosexuality, society must shake off the 19th century

industrial attitudes, and the power influence must change.18

This redistribution of power could come from governments and

subsequently filter down into museums. Foucalt gave birth to

the category ‘Queer Theory’, which is defined against the

norms of society. Queer theory is not a singular or systematic

conceptual or methodological framework, but a collection of

intellectual engagements discussing the relationship between

sex, gender and sexual desire. If queer theory is a school of

thought, then it is one with a highly unorthodox view of

discipline. The term describes a diverse range of critical

practices and priorities within society, and is a theory that

could be applied to any historical category, including

museums.

17 Foucault, Michel, The Use of Pleasure The History of Sexuality Vol, Penguine History, 1992, p.1518 Foucault, Michel, The Will to Knowledge The History of Sexuality:1, Penguine Books, 1998, p.101

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Prick Up Your Ears: The Extent of Homosexual Inclusion in Local

Museums

This section will focus on the museum’s perspective on LGBT

objects. It will assess the representation of the homosexual

community within local museums before and after the repeal of

the Section 28 Act. It will also discuss the potential for

museums to become more representative.

The collection remit for a local museum extends to any objects

that represent the community. My question is: does this

include items that represent the local gay community? Section

28 of the Local Government Act (1988) prohibited local

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authorities in England and Wales from ‘promoting’

homosexuality, it also labelled gay family relationships as

‘pretend’.19 In 1994 Gabrielle Bourn asked 20 British social

history departments what gay objects they had in their

collections. Five of the museums were actively collecting

(Hackney, Islington, Glasgow and Stoke-On-Trent) and two

others (Victoria and Albert museum and Leicester Museum) had

objects connected to Lesbian and Gay people.20 In 2000 Angela

Vanegas conducted a similar study, and found very little

change, with just two other museums (Museum of London and Tyne

and Wear Museum) collecting for specific exhibitions.21 Some

curators argued that lesbian and gay material was not relevant

to their collection, others felt that there was not an

audience for it, and some were deterred by pressure from local

authorites.22 This last point posed a serious threat as two

thirds of museums in England and Wales operate from local

authority funding. However, not all museums were willing to

comply with Section 28. Croydon Museum for example was

actively collecting LGBT items in 1995. The the curator

believed the representation of the LGBT community was

important and encouraged the specific collection of items that

would do this. The exhibition consisted of the oral histories

made by lesbian and gay people’s memories that lived in the

area, and objects that they felt were associated with them.23 19 https://www.stonewall.org.uk/at_school/what_the_law_says/8800.asp20 Bourn, Gabrielle, Invisibility: a study of the representation of lesbian and gay history culturein social history museums, un published MA dissertation, Department of Museum, 1994 21 Venegas, Angela, Representing lesbian and gay men in British social history museums, in Sandell, Richard, Museums, Society, Inequality, Routledge, 2002, p.9822 Ibid p.10523 Ibid p.101

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“It was hoped that these stories would prove to be effective

tools for addressing the discrimination and inequality that

Lesbian and Gay people may experience. […] By including

lesbian and gay stories within a broader historical

exhibition, sexuality can be seen with in its wider context.”24

This demonstrates that there was the capacity for lesbian and

gay people to be represented within local museums even during

times of political opposition. 10 July 2003 the House of Lords

voted overwhelmingly to repeal Section 28 of the Local

Government Act in England and Wales. This was mirrored by a

majority vote in the House of Commons in the following March.25

I conducted my own research by emailing ten specifically local

community museums around the country. My results were as

follows: Brighton, Bristol, Portsmouth and Hackney confirmed

they are collecting LGBT items.26 Milton Keynes, Wimbledon,

Hampshire, Amersham, Shropshire and Kingston said that

although it would be within their remit they do not have any

LGBT items. The statistics suggest an improvement, with 40%

collecting and 60% not collecting LGBT objects. I received the

following reasons explaining why museums had not accessioned

any LGBT related items. One said they had “a moratorium on

collecting further artefacts due to space problems” and “it

certainly would be within our remit to acquire LGBT related

items with a local provenance”. The Museums had not, however,

received any donations of LGBT items. The reason being given

of a lack of donations, rather than the threat of Section 28,

24 Ibid p.10325 https://www.stonewall.org.uk/at_school/what_the_law_says/8800.asp26 Appendix, Table 1

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gives us a positive sign that gay representation in the museum

sector is to some extent progressing.27 However, this still

suggests that more should be done to acquire LGBT objects. It

could be argued that when looking at the population

demographics for West Midlands compared to London the gay

communities are significantly smaller. London, which has a

population of 8,700,000, has a known 2.5% homosexual

population, which suggests an approximate 204,250 people are

lesbian or gay.28 On the other hand, West Midlands is home to

5,267,308, with a 1.2% known homosexual population making the

number or gay or lesbian people living there 63,207.29 The

demographics suggest that the museum representation is

demographically accurate. This raises the questions as to

whether museums should be demographically representational or

whether they should be equally representational of each

minority with in society.

The respondent from Hampshire Museum replied saying, “I’m not

sure what you mean by ‘lesbian and gay items.” Vanegas came

across a similar problem in her study, she states that

although “collections could be used in the everyday lives of

gays and lesbians as anyone else […] objects are not alive –

they have no intrinsic sexuality – however, it is probably

fair to say their users will assumed to have been

heterosexual.” This further shows the importance of making 27 Ibid Table 128 Appendix, Table 2 and http://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/londonfacts/default.htm?category=2

29 Appendix, Table 2 and http://www.shropshire.gov.uk/facts-and-figures/population/2001-census-population/

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sure the context of the owners sexuality is known.30 The museum

in Hampshire then went on to state “We have objects in the

collection that have been donated by people we know to be

members of the LGT community but our donor records reproduce

only the identifier made by the depositor and we pass no

judgment on their statements.” According to Darryl McIntyre,

if the context of the object’s connection to LGBT is not

recorded, the provenance of the object will then be lost with

the changes of staff.31

It has only been 11 years since Section 28 was repealed.

McIntyre argues that Section 28 “protected museums from having

to confront the representation of LGBT communities and their

histories and heritage.” Now museums have to execute their

duty of representing the LGBT members of the community. How

should museums deal with this? Hackney Museum’s response

demonstrates this perfectly:

“Hackney Museum's collection does contain items relating to gay and

lesbian experiences. A couple of the items are on permanent display

in the relevant narrative of the museum displays and other items are

displayed in temporary exhibitions where appropriate, in line with

all the items in the reserve collections. […]

Collecting objects relevant to the representation of communities in

Hackney is a part of out [sic] remit and this naturally includes gay

and lesbian communities.”32

30 Venegas, Angela, Representing lesbian and gay men in British social history museums, in Sandell, Richard, Museums, Society, Inequality, Routledge, 2002, p.9931 McIntyre Darryl, What to Collect? Museums and Lesbian, Gay Bisexual and Transgender Collecting, Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2007, p.4932 Appendix, Table 1

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The response illustrates that Hackney Museum is aware of the

community that they represent and incorporates objects as and

when they are relevant to their displays, thus setting an

example that all museums should strive for. The museum in

Shropshire demonstrates that museums might not be aware that

they have a deficiency in LGBT items:

“We have recently been reviewing what we have in our collection

connected with LGBT culture and communities in Shropshire for our

first community exhibition […] this has shown that it is not covered

at all.  We do not have any material directly relating to this theme

apart from a few items that relate to prominent Salopians [sic]

people who are known to have been LGBT.

 We are hoping that this exhibition […] will raise awareness that

this is a subject we are interested in covering within our museums

and hope that it will help to establish relations with the local

LGBT community and encourage future donations to address this gap in

our collections.”

It is evident that the museum is taking positive steps to

represent its whole community by trying to acquire LGBT

related objects and establish connections with the local LGBT

community. However, this has only occurred because it relates

to an exhibition that the museum wishes to present. McIntyre

states, “museums have begun to address the needs of all the

culturally diverse communities in the widest possible sense

whose needs have been traditionally marginalised by the

dominant culture.” He is suggesting that it is not a social

norm to present a gay exhibition. This explains why when the

need arises there is a lack of objects. According to Greham

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Black’s The Engaging Museum: Developing Museums for Visitor Involvement,

museum visitors find it difficult to comment on what they want

to see in exhibitions.33 This gives the Curator a certain

amount of freedom as to what they can present to the public. I

also issued a survey onto a social media sight asking out of

10 exhibitions in London which would people most like to

visit, the results came back relatively even with none of the

exhibitions being the most popular by a long way, this could

however be subject to the possible bias of people on my social

network and those that shared the survey with their friends.34

This does however, demonstrate the diverse range of tastes

visitors have. The results show that the museum least popular

was the Rainbow Jews exhibition, which further highlights the

lack of understanding – or perhaps interest - of visitors

towards the gay community, particularly when sexuality

intersects with other marginalised identities.35 From the

evidence of my research and Black’s observation, I argue that

there is an opportunity to incorporate a homosexual

perspective within local museums and that the majority of

curators are not in the habit of presenting LGBT objects. It

therefore seems logical to infer that it will be some time

before homosexuality will be considered a norm in museums.

To conclude this section, all local museum remits should

include donations of LGBT related items. Progress is being

made since the repeal of Section 28. However, there is still a33 Black, Graham, The Engaging Museum: Developing Museum For Visitor Involvement, Routledge, 2005, p2534 Appendix, Table 335 Appendix, Table 3

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long way to go. The problem is that curators are in the habit

of excluding the lesbian and gay communities so tend to,

whether unintentionally or not, neglect LGBT objects, thus

omitting LGBT histories from the presentation. Therefore, LGBT

items need to become normalised in museums and this is a

process that will take time.

Kenneth Halliwell 1926-1967: Orphan, Balding, Homosexual, Failure,

Murderer

I have conducted a case study of visitor reactions to the

Kenneth Halliwell Exhibition at Islington Museum. The study

will focus mainly on how the visitors feel toward going to an

art exhibition displaying work of a homosexual man, who was

also a murderer. Kenneth Halliwell had a tragic start in life.

His mother died in his presence at the age of 11 and his

father committed suicide some years later. Halliwell perused

an acting career in Scotland before being accepted to the

Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA). At RADA he met John

(Joe) Orton, his future partner both in crime and in love. The

couple were driven by their keen desire for fame and success,

and co-wrote books together (The Boy Hairdresser, for example, which

was published posthumously) from their one bed flat in

Islington. The couple received state benefits while they

~ 18 ~

waited for their literary works to be

published. During this time they amused

themselves by stealing books from

Islington Library and humorously

altering them. Eventually their

misdemeanours caught up with them and

they were sentenced to 6 months in

separate prisons for malicious damage.

It could be argued that the couple were

found guilty of violating social norms

in two respects; the scandalous

vandalising of the books as well as their scandalous

sexuality. Prison was a watershed in the relationship. Joe

flourished into the play-write that many people know today.

Kenneth, on the other hand, sank into a deeper depression and

produced collages which mirrored his dark, confused mind-set.

After his release, Kenneth was under the overwhelming strain

of coping with mental health problems, as well as dealing with

his own insecurities and jealousy of Joe’s success. Kenneth

Halliwell eventually caved under this pressure and beat Joe to

death with a hammer before ending his own life by taking an

overdose.

The Kenneth Halliwell: Collage exhibition was held at Islington

museums during LGBT month (February 2014). For every museum

exhibition an Interpretation Plan is created to find the aims

and objectives of projects, the learning outcomes, target

audience, main message/theme, features, the possible media

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Figure 2 Exotic Cage Birds book cover deface by K. Halliwell and J. Orton. See Appendix for more examples of book covers

access and design issues, project planning and evaluation.36

The interpretation plan was not available for the Halliwell

exhibition; however Islington Museum did have one from their

London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard Exhibition. I have chosen

to use this as a basis to work from because the exhibitions

both had sexuality as a context, ran simultaneously, and are

likely to have had a similar audiences. According to the

Interpretation Plan the audience outcomes were:

“1) Knowledge and understanding: Knowing hat or about Something;

Learning Facts or Information; Deepening Understanding

2) Attitudes & Values: Feelings; Perceptions; Opinions about

Ourselves (e.g. Self-Esteem); Opinions or Attitudes towards Other

People; Increased Capacity for Tolerance; Empathy; Attitudes towards

an Organisation

3) Activity, Behavior & Progression: What People do; What People

Intend to do; What People have done; A Change in the Way People

Manage Their Lives”37

On the basis that these three points were similar goals for

the Halliwell exhibition, I plan to use them to assess whether

the exhibition was successful.38 I developed a questionnaire to

assess visitor’s reactions to the exhibitions.39 Due to the

uniqueness of the exhibition, I had no prior expectations

regarding the audience reaction, whether it would be positive

36 Allen, Laura, Interpretation and Exhibitions: Severndroog Castle, 05/10/201437 Appendix 238 Appendix 3 and Table 339 Appendix 3

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or negative. I was not sure which Kenneth they were going to

perceive: the murderer, the collagist, the artist, or lover?

The questionnaire was anonymous and had three parts; an etics

form to understand more about who the visitors were, five

questions to answer before the exhibition, and nine questions

to answer after. There was a mixture of closed and open-ended

questions, with 14 participants. Given the small number of

visitors at any one time, it was not possible to obtain a

larger sample. However, I was able to amass a reasonable set

of qualitative data, which is useful evidence for

understanding the detailed responses of individuals who

experienced the exhibition. The demographics were as follows:

Male Female0123456789

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Gender

Heterosexual Homosexual0

2

4

6

8

10

12

Sexual Orientation

I looked at the quantitative data from two perspectives: first, gender/sexuality then, age.40 Unfortunately no homosexual females filled in the questionnaires so this is nota fully representative demographic. However, from the questionnaires it is possible to attain that, for both gender and sexual orientation, an even spread of people had heard about Kenneth Halliwell before the exhibition. The majority ofpeople felt positive about going to the exhibition, with zero participants feeling negative, but some were unsure about how to feel. Out of the people feeling positive: three people were

40 Appendix, Table 4,5 and 6

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-9 10-20 21-30 31-40 41-50 51-60 60+012345678910

Age Ranges

visiting the exhibition for new experiences, others were interested in Joe Orton and/or art, and one person was interested because of her LGBT friends. All heterosexual womenand homosexual men who were not sure what to expect felt positive by the end of the visit. Only one heterosexual man did not know how to feel about the exhibition. He wrote: “I neither felt positive or negative about the exhibition but didfind it rather interesting and learnt and saw stuff I had never seen before.” Before the exhibition he wrote “It’s something I’ve never heard of and I like to learn and see new things”. So his visit accomplished all his goals. However, he did not manage to identify on a personal level with Kenneth and therefore felt dissatisfied with his visit.

It was the heterosexual males that felt negatively toward Kenneth Halliwell as opposed to heterosexual females and homosexual males who felt positive towards Kenneth. Interestingly participants (a), (e) and (i) all described Halliwell’s “soul” with respects to him being “lost”, “lost soul” or “tortured soul” this made the 2 female participants (e) and (i) feel positively towards him. As for participant (a), a heterosexual male, this made him feel more disassociated with Halliwell. Participants (a), (c), (h) and (k), all of whom were male, described Halliwell as a “dark secretive man”, “deranged”, “murderer”, “vandal and a thief”. These participants seem to disassociate themselves from Halliwell because of his eccentric personality traits and his criminality. Halliwell was an outsider all his life, for theseparticipants he is still an outsider.

Throughout the questionnaire there was a striking difference between the older participants and the younger participants. The older participants were more aware of Halliwell existence,possibly as they were more contemporary to him. The exhibitionconfused the younger participants especially participants (h) and (m), who were in the youngest age range (10-20), found they were unsure how to feel about the exhibition and could not explain why, which suggest the exhibition was somewhat

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confusing for them. They both picked up on the crimes of Halliwell as opposed to the fact that society would not accepthim as a homosexual or that he had a tragic life. Participant (m) made references to the homosexual community in his questionnaire; he suggests that there needs to be more homosexual information and that he would recommend the exhibition to “gay people”. This demonstrates a lack of understanding in the young viewers of the exhibition which needs to be addressed. It does however also suggest that interacting with LGBT histories through the exhibition had provoked an analysis of issues relating to sexuality in contemporary society, which demonstrates the power that such exhibitions can have.

Reverting back to Islington Museum’s three audience outcomes, it would be a fair statement that the majority of participantscomplied with the ‘Knowledge and Understanding’ criteria before entering the exhibition, as the majority of participants felt positive and that they wanted to learn something new. The majority of the participants found the exhibition interesting and learnt or broadened their understanding of Kenneth Halliwell’s life. This is evident from participant (d), “I had no idea about the story it was shocking and intriguing,” and participant (n): “I have definitely learnt something new today. It’s an unusual art work that I had no clue about. I do know works of Joe Orton but no [sic] so much of Kenneth Halliwell.” Female heterosexual and male homosexual visitors found it much easierto comply with the ‘Attitudes and Values’ criteria for exampleparticipant (e) “I liked the level of ‘humanity’ given to Halliwell.” Whether it is a representation of today’s society or the museum’s interpretation the evidence, this suggest thatmale heterosexuals could not empathise with Kenneth Halliwell,There are multiple interpretations of this outcome: one interpretation is that this is because of attitudes towards sexuality that intersect with both sexuality and gender today.This interpretation is supported by the breakdown by gender of

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those who supported the recent legislation enabling gay marriage: women were much more likely to support gay marriage than men (67% of women compared to 55% of men in a Populous Poll in 2009).41

However another possible interpretation is that the response of male heterosexuals was as a result of gendered responses tocrime and eccentric tendencies. I would argue that the former interpretation is more likely based on the evidence, but with the limited data available, it is not possible to confidently discount alternative interpretations.

‘Activity, Behaviour and Progression’ is hard to assess. As mentioned the majority of participants came to learn somethingnew about Kenneth Halliwell, which was achieved. However, ‘Progression’ or ‘changing the way people manage their lives’ is even harder to assess.

The sympathy received from heterosexual females could be attributed to the common ground they share from fighting for their own marginalised history.42 We can learn much from the approaches and lessons of other marginalised groups in making (or, more often, fighting for) representational space in places that tell people’s histories. Although not discussing homosexuals, Annie Delin in her essay on the absence of disabled people in art, states that for disabled people, knowing that they had historic forebears that achieved and contributed within society sends a key message about the powerand diversity of experience of disabled people. Furthermore, Delin asserts that having space for such representations can have a profound impact on the mindset of contemporary viewers,and “that this kind of knowledge is essential in combatting a medicalising, dehumanising mindset and in letting everyone know that disabled people are as much a part of British

41 http://www.populuslimited.com/the-times-the-times-gay-britain-poll-100609.html42 Tosh, John, The Persuit of History Aims, Methods & New Directions In The Study of Modern History 2nd Ed, Longman, 1991, p.180

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culture as they are”.43 This suggests that the historic gap in the representation of homosexuality in local museums has had an impact (or lack thereof) on the heterosexual male mindset, which has made it hard for them to affiliate with any history of a minority in a museum setting because they are so accustomed to seeing their own widely celebrated history in local museums.

Conclusion

This project highlights the importance for local museums to represent homosexuality. From the areas of research covered itis possible to denote that museums are still uncomfortable with representing the homosexual community, most likely because of (a) contemporary attitudes, from which curators andhistorians alike are not immune, and (b) homosexuality is not a subject that has yet been given an adequate level of attention and research by historians. As a result, homosexuality’s place in history is relatively ambiguous. Withthe repeal of Section 28 local museums are now able to freely represent the homosexual community; this has proved easier forcounties where there is a larger demographic of homosexuals. The data displays that there are more homosexuals in London, than the west midlands however this might simply be because inner city communities are often more tolerant, diverse places, encouraging higher rates of disclosure. From the evidence presented in the third section it can, it must be taken into account the (1.4%) 121,800 people in London and (1.2%) 63,208 people in the West Midlands who refused to specify their sexuality.44 Therefore more closet homosexuals equals lower numbers but not actually less homosexuals in counties. Counties with lower homosexual demographics are guilty of underrepresenting the homosexual community, and these curators have to be vigilant and make sure that the

43 Delin, Annie, Buried in the footnotes: The absence of disabled people in the collective imagery of our past, in Sandell, Richard, Museums, Society, Inequality, Routledge, 2002, 9644

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histories of homosexuality are included in their exhibitions. The Kenneth Halliwell case study serves to highlight the difference in reactions by age and gender to an exhibition whose context forces attention on histories of sexuality. It highlighted the difficulty for heterosexual males to affiliatewith Kenneth Halliwell, a situation that has probably been exacerbated due to previous failings in history to represent minorities. This paper has analysed the evidence, which strongly suggests that excluding all minority groups has previously been a norm, and argues that it is up to the museums, with all other social institutions, to take responsibility and make the necessary changes, for minorities to be viewed otherwise.

Bibliography

Primarary Sources

Allen, Laura, Interpretation and Exhibitions: Severndroog Castle, 05/10/2013

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The Bible, Leviticus, 20:13

Secondary Source

Black, Graham, The Engaging Museum: Developing Museum For Visitor Involvement, Routledge, 2005

Crawford, Katherine, European Sexualities 1400 – 1800, Cambridge University Press, 2007

Delin, Annie, Buried in the footnotes: The absence of disabled people in the collective imagery of our past, in Sandell, Richard, Museums, Society, Inequality, Routledge, 2002

Foucault, Michel, The Will to Knowledge The History of Sexuality:1, PenguineBooks, 1998

Foucault, Michel, The Use of Pleasure The History of Sexuality Vol, PenguineHistory

McIntyre Darryl, What to Collect? Museums and Lesbian, Gay Bisexual and Transgender Collecting, Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2007

Peakman, Julie, The Pleasure’s All Mine A History of Perverse Sex, Reaktion Book Ltd, 2013

The Bible, Leviticus, 20:13

Tosh, John, The Persuit of History Aims, Methods & New Directions In The Study of Modern History 2nd Ed, Longman, 1991, p.180

Venegas, Angela, Representing lesbian and gay men in British social history museums, in Sandell, Richard, Museums, Society, Inequality, Routledge, 2002, p.99

Websites

http://www.populuslimited.com/the-times-the-times-gay-britain-poll-100609.html

https://www.stonewall.org.uk/at_school/what_the_law_says/8800.asp

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http://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/londonfacts/default.htm?category=2

http://www.shropshire.gov.uk/facts-and-figures/population/2001-census-population/

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Appendix

Table 1 [LGBT email correspondence table]

Email I sent:

Dear Curator,

I am currently in my final year at the University of Greenwich, and am writing a project on the representation of the lesbian and gay community in local museums.

It would be very helpful to my research if you could kindly tell me if your collection contains any lesbian and gay items in it? If so are they on display? and would it be within your collection remit to acquire lesbian and gay items.

I look forward to your reply,Yours Sincerely,Francesca Lam-March

Museum Within Remit Outside of RemitHackney Dear Francesca,

Your email enquiry has been passed on to me.

In answer to your questions,

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Hackney Museum's collection does contain items relating togay and lesbian experiences. Acouple of the items are on permanent display in the relevant narrative of the museum displays and other items are displayed in temporary exhibitions where appropriate, in line with all the items in the reserve collections.

We are currently updating our collecting policy but the one to date can be accessed onlinehere: http://www.hackney.gov.uk/Assets/Documents/collecting-policy.pdf

Collecting objects relevant tothe representation of communities in Hackney is a part of out remit and this naturally includes gay and lesbian communities.

Please do not hesitate to contact me for more information.

Kind regards,Niti

Kingston Dear Francesca Lam-March,

Thank you for your enquiry. I have searched our database and there is no LGBT material that Ican find. Our collection is comprised of archaeological and social history items, as well asobjects bequeathed by the photographer Edward Muybridge. The permanent galleries tell thestory of Kingston up to World War II, and do not include anything relevant.

However, we do have a community

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case which Kingston LGBT Forum used for a display in Spring 2013. We also have an Art Gallery which shows several changing exhibitions each year and last May we held an exhibition in conjunction with Kingston University entitled ‘Iris Murdoch and Philippa Foot:An Arc of Friendship’ which looked at the relationship between Murdoch and her philosopher friend/ lover.

It certainly would be within ourremit to acquire LGBT related items with a local provenance, as whatever we collect must be connected to Kingston in some way. Dr Duncan Grewcock of Kingston University is currentlyour Associate Curator and with his input, we are hoping to drawup a contemporary collecting plan to fill some of the gaps inour collection.

Best wishes,Charlotte Samuels

Amersham Dear Francesca

Many thanks for your email. I don't know of any items in our collection that are specificallyabout lesbian or gay people in the local community. Our acquisitions policy is to collect items that reflect the history of the town and the surrounding area, so anything that fits within the remit - space permitting for larger objects - we would endeavour to acquire. We aim to be inclusive and reflect all members of the community in the museum's collection and interpretation.

Best wishes

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Emily Toettcher

Hamshire Dear Francesca,

Thank you for your enquiry.

I’m afraid we’re short staffed at the moment and have no keeperof Social History, although we’ll do our best to help.

I’m not sure what you mean by ‘lesbian and gay items’.  We have objects in the collection that have been donated by peoplewe know to be members of the LGTcommunity but our donor records reproduce only the identifier made by the depositor and we pass no judgment on their statements.

Our collections represent the lives and activities of all the people of Hampshire, and we do our best to keep abreast of the changes in society as reflected in the objects that surround us.If there is any specific item orgroup of items you would like meto search for, then please let me know.

Any clarification you can offer will be very welcome.  I look forward to hearing from you.

GillGill Arnott

Shropshire

Thank you for your enquiry.  We have recently been reviewing what we have in our collection connected with LGBTculture and communities in Shropshire for our first community exhibition at the new Shrewsbury Museum & Art Gallery – Radical Shropshire. Unfortunately this has shown

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that it is not covered at all.  We do not have any material directly relating to this theme apart from a few items that relate to prominentSalopians people who are knownto have been LGBT.

We are hoping that this exhibition, which will open inMarch, will raise awareness that this is a subject we are interested in covering within our museums and hope that it will help to establish relations with the local LGBT community and encourage futuredonations to address this gap in our collections.

All the best,EKL

Brighton Dear Francesca,

Thanks for your email. We do have a number of objects with LGBTQ connections in our museums, particularly in Brighton Museum. Last year I worked on a project called Object Stories which was a trail and reinterpretation of objects in the museum which focused on LGBTQ history. All of the objects on the trail are from the permanent collection and represent only some of the items we have withthis connection.

You can download and read the trail leaflet, see the objectsand find out more about the project on our website here: http://www.brighton-hove-rpml.org.uk/Museums/brightonmuseum/whattosee/Pages/ObjectStories2013.aspx On thispage you can also find a link to a blog post I wrote about the project.

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Finally, we also recorded parts of the trail to video and put these on YouTube, you can watch these here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CK5sWsFIpuI&list=PL7imCIpGqvhpkCI7V8FheSip1pQdhgt5g

Hope this answers your questions, if you would like any more information just get back in touch.

Thanks,

Robert WhiteMilton Keynes

Francesca

I have checked with the curator and can confirm that this museumdoes not hold any items specifically related to the lesbian or gay community. Currently we have a moratorium on collecting further artefacts due to space problems. However, when we are in a position to collect further artefacts we would be happy to accept any items relating to the lesbian orgay community that fits in with our collecting policy.

I hope this helps.

Murray Burring

Bristol Dear Francesca,

Thank you for your email.

We have some items in the collection directly linked to LGBT history, several of whichwere collected as part of the recent exhibition detailed below.

We recently co-curated an

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exhibition called Revealing Stories with local LGBT history group, OutStories. Information about the exhibition is available onlineas follows:

Details of the co-curation process: http://mshed.org/get-more-involved/paul-hamlyn-foundation-our-museum/revealing-stories-%E2%80%93-a-case-study-on-sharing-decision-making-with-communities%EF%BB%BF/

A review of the exhibition by Outstories: http://outstoriesbristol.org.uk/2013/08/revealing-stories-exhibition-review/

There is also a recording of apresentation about the exhibition, given by Curator Catherine Littlejohns at last year’s Social History CuratorsGroup conference, available here: http://www.shcg.org.uk/conference2013

There are also some objects ondisplay in M Shed, such as material relating to the firstcivil partnership conducted inBristol:http://mshed.org/explore-contribute/themes/in-our-houses/memorable-moment-romance/a-momentous-occasion/ (the objects displayed are pictured in the scrolling window ‘On display’, on the right hand side).

We would be interested in collecting more items relatingto LGBT people. We have an ongoing relationship with the Outstories group, and we hope to collect further material inthe future with their assistance.

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Best wishes for your research,

Helen McConnellCollections Officer, Public History

Portsmouth

Dear Francesca

Thank you very much for your enquiry about representation of the gay and lesbian community in our collections.

The short answer is we have a little but not enough by any means, I am attaching a PDF ofwhat we have, a lot of which are oral histories.  I do not think we have any of this material on display at the moment although we have used it in a major temporary exhibition we did called 'Generations' about people's life experiences focusing on key moments in the life cycle.

It certainly is within our collections remit to acquire this sort of material, if it has a Portsmouth connection weare interested in it, whateverit is.

Hope that helps.

Yours sincerely

Katy BallCollections Registrar

Wimbledon

Dear Ms Lam-MarchAs far as I know, the Museum hasno lesbian or gay material. We do though, have a large collection of ephemera that is being catalogued at present, andI will aske the curator to watchout for anything relevant.

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It is certainly within our remitto include anything relating to the history of Wimbledon, subject to space and conservation limitations.There is a set of the Wimbledon Area Gay Society newsletters for1974-83 in the London School of Economics Library, and some WAGSpapers 1987-93 are in the Hall-Carpenter Archives there. The Wellcome Library has relevant ephemera.Charles Toase

Table 2 [Gay Demographics]

Table 3 [Social Media Survey]

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Table 4 [Raw Data]

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Table 5 [Age]

Table 6 [Gender and Sexuality]

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Appendix 1 [Examples Defaced Books]

Addition of an Aztec statue pasted pasted over Sybil Thorndike’s face (left) Original version left. C. 1950s

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Addition of three alternative face over The 3 Faces of Eve (left) Original version (right)

Addition of a jock strap onto The Steel Cocoon

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Addition of a backside, fist and crocodile head on open pages

Addition of a heavily tattooed man over the Poet Laureate JohnBetjeman's picture

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Appendix 2 [Examples of Kenneth’s Collages]

Work complete c.

Untitled Collage by Kenneth Halliwell c. 1950-60s

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Untitled Collage by Kenneth Halliwell c. 1950-60s

Appendix 3 [Questionnaire Design]

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Appendix 4 [London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard Interpretation Plan]

Interpretation Plan: London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard

Background – The London Lesbian and Gay Switchboard (LLGS) display will be installed in the new acquisitions showcase from 31 January 2014 to 7 March 2014

Purpose – To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the LLGS, as it was founded in Islington and continues to operate in the borough

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why?purpose

who?audience

what?message

how?method

Audience – General visitor to museum as showcase is by the front entrance; LGBT; those interested in charities and socialwork.

Message/themes – We want people to become aware of the services the LLGS have provided over the years in raising awareness of LGBT issues and providing support. This could be a potentially sensitive subject as it deals with those in needas well as sexuality.

Audience outcomes –

Generic Learning Outcomes

1) Knowledge and understanding: Knowing what or about something; Learning facts or information; Deepening understanding

2) Attitudes & Values: Feelings; Perceptions; Opinions about ourselves (e.g. self-esteem); Opinions or attitudes towards other people; Increased capacity for tolerance; Empathy; Attitudes towards an organisation

3) Activity, Behaviour & Progression: What people do; What people intend to do; What people have done; A change in the way people manage their lives

Focus/parameters – We will not include personal data of users LLGS.

Objects: We hope to include official material dating to the early years of LLGS such as minute books (check access restrictions for Data Protection Act), letters, photographs offounders etc; campaign material such as slogan t-shirts, badges etc; ephemeral material such as leaflets etc.

Sections:

History of LLGS; one/two main campaigns – Equal Rights and Aids(?); coming out theme - something which has always been anissue; changes to the meaning of the word “gay”; modern day concerns e.g. social media/internet bullying.

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2007 Queens Voluntary Award

Each section to contain statistics, sections on the word gay and coming out to have quotes.

Research – Visit archive of the LLGS on 10 January 2014

Impacting factors – Loans are not likely to have monetary value so security risk is low. As material dates to within thelast 40 years, less likely that conservation will be needed. Turnaround time is tight and may mean that an event cannot be planned to coincide with display. The display is largely contingent on the breadth of material available from the LLGS and their willingness to lend.

Interpretive devices - Panels and labels in showcase; possiblyAV material on PCs near the Education Room if the LLGS have something suitable/ready-made; possible article on museum website if time permits

Access – The team will ensure that intellectual access is madeas easy as possible. This can be achieved through layering text by developing themes from broad to specific. The use of jargon is to be avoided and we are to be mindful of terminology used. Keep sentences at different lengths to vary the rhythm of the text. Do not assume prior knowledge of subject matter. Try to stick to the reading age of an average 14 year old child.

Physical access for wheelchair users is hampered by location of the showcase close to the front entrance doors.

Visitor journey – This will begin through marketing via an in-house leaflet; possible online article; mail-outs; through thecouncil and at libraries. The display and possible event will lead to further discussion around the topic. Comments cards ofvisitor feedback will be used to take into consideration visitors reactions to the display.

Timescale –

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Research: 16 December 2013 – January 2014Loans confirmed: 10 January 2014Event confirmed: 10 January 2014Marketing: Mid-January 2014Proof-reading and final copy: 27 January 2014In-house design finalised and printed: 1 February 2014Installation: 31 January 2014Take down: 7 March 2014Return loans: 10 March 2014

People – The project team consists of Natalie Conboy (Museum Exhibition and Collections Officer) who will lead and Anne Marie Garbutt (Friday volunteer) who will assist with researchand text writing.

Readership – This interpretation plan will be distributed to Museum staff; Anne Marie Garbutt and LLGS contact.

Summative evaluation – We will test the success of the displayby using comment cards or post it notes on nearby pillar if deemed necessary (like a thought cloud or tree with leaves).

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