LGBTQIA+ SEA: Collecting Australian Queer Water Stories

Australian National Maritime Museum

Collecting Australian Queer Water Stories

The Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is widely celebrated every year. This year the Australian National Maritime Museum is launching a research program to highlight queer maritime histories.

This program will explore the experiences of LGBTQIA+ people living and working on our seas, rivers, lakes, and waters.

The Museum is inviting people to share their stories (anonymously if preferred) for our archive and for an exhibition in 2025.

A person in a swimsuit leaning on a metal railingDescription automatically generatedThey could include experiences in the navy, merchant marine, travel and tourism, on wharves and ports and in surf-lifesaving, swimming and sailing communities.

Project curator Will Mather said, ‘The LGBTQIA+ experience is under-represented in our collections and exhibitions and we’d like to change that. We know that the stories are out there, we want to hear and share them.’

/Public Release.