The exhibition evokes the gay liberation era in Sydney – a time of extraordinarily rapid social change – through oral histories, previously unseen photographs, rare posters, magazines, scrapbooks, newspaper clippings, badges and more. Exhibition visitors will be able to view:
- Australia’s first lesbian novel (All That False Instruction by Kerryn Higgs); • the first gay glossy magazine (William & John) shut down for obscenity after just 12 months;
- images of the first lesbian and gay demonstrations staged in Sydney – including a rare photograph of the first arrest at a gay demonstration, on 11 July 1972, of Sydney Gay Liberation artist and activist David McDiarmid;
- the official poster for Sydney’s first ‘Day of International Gay Solidarity’ (the first Mardi Gras) on 24 June 1978, and much more.
Exhibition co-curator Margot Riley said this “first poster – part of a collection of over 100 stunning posters recently donated by Mardi Gras 78er and CAMP member Robert French – is like the holy grail of Sydney gay rights poster art as only a few copies have survived. It features a butterfly which was a symbol of same sex orientation long before the rainbow flag was officially launched in San Francisco in 1978.”
The State Library is acknowledged to be one of the first cultural institutions in Australia to actively collect the records of lesbians and gay men, spearheaded by then Mitchell Librarian Margy Burn in the mid-1990s, and it hasn’t stopped. However, there are still gaps in the collection and State Librarian John Vallance is calling on the public to donate items related to past and present-day experiences of coming out, LGBTIQ+ activism, participation in gay and lesbian movements and community life.
“We’re looking for material (posters, photographs, letters, diaries, magazines, memorabilia, etc) from baby boomers and beyond so that all these stories can come out of the closets, and out from under the bed, to be told, shared and preserved for future generations,” said Ms Riley.
“It is vital that the Library’s collection represent all aspects of sexual diversity in NSW. recording the voices of trans and indigenous people as well as those of people from non-English speaking backgrounds.
‘Coming Out in the 70s’ is a free exhibition at the State Library of NSW, Macquarie Street, Sydney. The exhibition is on show until 16 May 2021.
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