Lesbian Legacies

Press release

Berlin – 02.04.2025 – The Kunstraum Scherben Berlin presents Lesbian Legacies, a three-part exhibition series offering a fascinating perspective on art history. It highlights previously overlooked viewpoints and honours lesbian artists as both artistic and social avant-garde.

The first of the three exhibitions, Grace of Desire, will open on May 1, offering a reassessment of Surrealism through the lens of queer photographers. The second show, Archive Affections, will follow, showcasing contemporary works that challenge and redefine the established art canon. The series will conclude with The Butch is Here To Stay, a celebratory homage to “female masculinities.”

With concise strokes, this trilogy outlines the cultural legacy of lesbian positions from the early 20th-century modernist movement to the present. Through an engaging dialogue between historical and contemporary works, it aims to encourage artists and audiences alike to explore this lesser-known canon and uncover its transformative aesthetic and social potential.

This project responds not only to the notorious cis-male dominance that persists even within the queer art world; it also seeks to advance the delicate renaissance of the often-marginalized self-designation “lesbian” and contribute to strengthening lesbian identities in culture and society. It is a call for discourse, engagement, and action at Kunstraum Scherben. Known for its ambitious programming, the space serves as an ideal platform for this critical and empowering discourse.

Now more than ever! At a time when artistic freedom is increasingly under pressure and racist, sexist, and queerphobic tendencies are gaining alarming influence, this exhibition series aims to be more than a space for artistic reflection. It invites visitors to explore the power of queer art as a source of resilience and resistance, sending a strong message for equal rights, social diversity, and artistic independence.

Lesbian Legacies received funding from the Hauptstadtkulturfonds. The project was conceived and curated by Tarik Kentouche and Lorenz Liebig of Kunstraum Scherben along with Dr. Birgit Bosold. She is recognized as one of the most distinguished experts in presenting queer cultural heritage and has curated numerous exhibitions, particularly at the Schwules Museum Berlin.

Related Link

Press release by Kunstraum Scherben: Grace of Desire – Rebellion, Surrealism, Photography