Material Survey PROJECT REPORT 2006 KATE DAVISON MUSEUM VICTORIA TABLE OF CONTENTS TABLE OF CONTENTS............................................................................................................. 1 PROJECT TEAM....................................................................................................................... 2 1. AIMS AND BACKGROUND .................................................................................................. 3 1.1 Project background ......................................................................................................... 3 2. CONTEXT.............................................................................................................................. 5 2.1 Addressing cultural diversity ........................................................................................... 5 2.2 Historical and national context of the project .................................................................. 7 3. METHODOLOGY .................................................................................................................. 9 3.1 Model for research .......................................................................................................... 9 3.2 Project resources .......................................................................................................... 10 3.3 Project methodology...................................................................................................... 10 3.4 Challenges for further consideration ............................................................................. 17 4. OUTCOMES ........................................................................................................................ 18 4.1 Summary of survey findings.......................................................................................... 18 4.2 Assessment of absences in the material record ........................................................... 20 4.3 Key issues ..................................................................................................................... 21 5. REFERENCES .................................................................................................................... 23 6. APPENDICES...................................................................................................................... 25 6.1 Project brief ................................................................................................................... 27 6.2 Consent form................................................................................................................. 32 6.3 Organisations and community groups contacted.......................................................... 34 6.4 Media............................................................................................................................. 36 6.5 Collections..................................................................................................................... 43 6.6 Survey information sheet ............................................................................................ 131 6.7 Previous queer exhibitions .......................................................................................... 133 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Material Survey 2006 1 PROJECT TEAM Core Team Curator, Cultural Diversity, Museum Victoria Deb Tout-Smith Assistant Curator, Museum Victoria Kate Davison Curatorial Assistant, Museum Victoria Alex Duncan Head, History and Technology Department, Museum Victoria Richard Gillespie Volunteer Chris Friday Volunteer Joan Nestle Volunteer Mark Pendleton Volunteer Pamie Fung Community Consultative Committee Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives Graham Willett Esther Singer Gary Jaynes State Library of Victoria Marg McCormack Shane Carmody Clare Williamson Museum Victoria Richard Gillespie Michael Reason Lorette Fleming Transgender Victoria Sally Goldner Matrix Guild of Victoria Jane Kent Women’s Liberation and Lesbian Feminist Ardy Tibby Archive Jean Taylor ALSO Foundation Adam Pickvance Colin Billing JOY FM Carol Wilkinson Pride March Victoria David Westlake Garrett Teters Vicki Jones Victorian AIDS Council Colin Batrouney Mike Kennedy Department of Sustainability & Environment, Julian Hill Victorian Government and former Mayor and Councillor, City of Port Phillip Lesbian and gay press/print media Andrew Shaw Mayor, City of Port Phillip Darren Ray Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Material Survey 2006 2 1. AIMS AND BACKGROUND Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender histories have been commonly regarded as ‘hidden’ histories. Evidence has all too often been actively suppressed or destroyed, leading to false ideas that these histories do not exist, or that queer sexuality and its impact on society is limited to the present and the very recent past. Even while this is acknowledged to be false by many individuals and institutions, there is still a dearth of identified historical material that sheds light on the place of queer1 sexuality in the story of Victoria, leaving an imbalanced and inaccurate picture of the state’s past. Yet Victoria has a very rich and diverse history in relation to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender experience. Part of this diversity and richness has been documented by the archival and public work of the Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives since its establishment in 1978. Other organisations, such as the Women’s Liberation and Lesbian Feminist Archives, the New Frontier Dance Association and individuals, have also been documenting information and collecting the material culture of queer communities. All, however, face significant challenges in both resources and broader public support and recognition. The Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives, for instance, is a self-funded community group reliant upon volunteers. Its efforts to collect and preserve material and make it accessible to the public has been significantly limited by lack of resources, and, proactive research and accumulation has proved challenging. Conversely, major public collecting institutions such as Museum Victoria and the State Library of Victoria are yet to either focus on queer histories in their collections or adequately recognize and organize relevant material within their collections. This pilot survey was undertaken to show that with some targeted resource provision for research, we can unearth important and exciting documentation of an important and hitherto ‘hidden’ aspect of Victoria’s, and indeed Australia’s, past. The broad aims of the project include improved knowledge, representation and interpretation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender material in public collections. It aimed to promote the development of strategies for encouraging discussion and awareness of homosexuality in the mainstream community. It also aimed to begin to provide lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Victorians with a sense of inclusion in the broader story of our heritage. The survey has provided an opportunity for the celebration of political and social achievements, and recognition of the tenets of equal opportunity and human rights for all Victorians. The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Material Survey has been of both symbolic and practical significance to major Victorian collecting institutions and to GLBT communities in Victoria. It has demonstrated the importance of active collecting, documentation and research into histories which have been and largely remain hidden, and has shown the value of material which exists in both public and private collections. It has identified areas in which resources are urgently required to document and maintain the material record of GLBT communities in Victoria, provided the groundwork for a broader, nation-wide survey and suggested a range of strategies for improving representation of cultural diversity in our major collecting institutions. 1.1 Project background 1.1.1 Formulation In 2003 Museum Victoria was approached by members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities with a proposal to develop an exhibition to mark the 25th 1 The term ‘queer’ has a variety of meanings and uses. Here it is used as a generic term equating to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender forms of sexuality and identity, and will retain this meaning throughout the report. However it should be noted that no self-descriptive term (‘queer’ or other) is universally accepted, nor do contemporary terms enable accurate application to the past; however, the terms used in this report should be taken to be descriptive of practices or identities in the past that we would now identify as such. Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Material Survey 2006 3 anniversary of the Crimes (Sexual Offences) Act 1980, which decriminalised certain sexual acts between men in the state of Victoria. These discussions coincided with moves by Museum Victoria to address issues of cultural diversity in relation to sexuality. Several meetings were held with community representatives and representatives from the State Library of Victoria and the Australian Lesbian and Gay Archives. Although resources were not available to develop an exhibition for 2005, it was agreed that a survey of collections relating to queer history should be undertaken. It was acknowledged that poor documentation and knowledge of material objects associated with queer histories limited the possibility of future exhibitions, and also limited the possibility of other