Out and About: Queering the Museum at RAMM (Royal Albert Memorial Museum in Exeter). 

A University of Exeter and RAMM partnership led by Professor Jana Funke, Writer Natalie McGrath and Engagement Officer from RAMM Eleanor Coleman.

Writer in Residence throughout the duration of this project, the aim is to produce a queer poetic heritage of the museum’s collections, with a central focus on the public collections. What are the discoveries made to reveal its queer stories or the leaps taken to open up a queer lens and perspective for a wider public. A global pandemic has presented the challenge of how to undertake this role when the museum has been shut for much of this time! 

The project has included working with a range of LGBTQIA+ partners and groups. A new oral heritage of LGBTQ+ people in Devon is being undertaken and a permanent installation of these will be in the museum itself.  The installation is designed by Stand and Stare Collective standandstare.com  A group of amazing researchers have produced brilliant responses to the online collections and you can see them on the website. 

Natalie has also been the project’s Cultural Heritage Producer, working and supporting a range of artists who have responded to the museums collections. Here the project has programmed a series of live online events in collaboration with the museum itself to share the work more widely. All the artists responses can be accessed via the project website.

This is a National Lottery Heritage Fund supported project.

Twitter @OutandAboutQTM

Website: https://outandabout.exeter.ac.uk

Design work by Frank Duffy. You can find out more about their work here: frankduffy.co.uk