(in)visible: abstractions and fragments of queerness

What emerges when we look at an art collection from a queer perspective? Can a museum tell us something about the duality of absence and presence? 

The exhibition (in)visible departs from Malmö Art Museum’s collection, presenting artworks ranging from the early 20th century to the current day. It also includes archival material from the RFSL archive and Malmö Stadsarkiv (Malmö City Archives) echoing lgbti+ narratives connected to the city. 

The curatorial approach for (in)visible expanded beyond the walls of the museum, engaging local artists, researchers and youth groups in a series of conversations and workshops. This collaborative process sparked questions around fragmentation, spatiality, the body and desire. Exploring the collection also meant finding gaps which opened doors for borrowing and acquiring new works. 

A total of 29 local and international artists, working from various perspectives, are included in the exhibition. Several artworks explicitly frame queer motifs, and others have been included following a careful methodology of queer readings, resulting in exciting and unexpected connections. 

Many of the themes explored in the exhibition are interconnected. Some artworks allude to the private realm, the familial and intimate, while others investigate the different ways public spaces can be experienced. In several works, the body is featured as malleable matter, marked and shaped by history and power. 

in(visible) provides glimpses into expressions of queerness, leaving room for a multiplicity of interpretations that cannot be contained.  

The exhibition is curated by Tawanda Appiah, Sofia Landström, Jari Malta, Sara Rydby and Jonelle Twum. 

Works from: Gösta Adrian-Nilsson, Shahin Alipour, Elin Behrens, Barbro Bäckström, Siri Derkert, A K Dolven, Sahar El-Kheteeb, Ester Fleckner, Francisco-Fernando Granados, Tore Hallas, Tiril Hasselknippe, Antony Gormley, Patrik Gustavsson, Leif Holmstrand, Sam Hultin, Jesper Just, Axel Karlsson Rixon, Matts Leiderstam, April Lin & Jasmine Lin, Paul Maheke, Zanele Muhali, Kirsten Ortwed, Olivia Plender, Samaneh Reyhani, Prem Shahib, Marianna Uutinen, Del Lagrace Volcano, Knut Åsdam.

(in)visbile is made possible with the support by Malmö stad and Region Skåne.