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ho‘s going to remember you when you‘re gone‘.’ Inventors. artists. politicians and
revolutionaries. to name but a few. write themselves into history. but what about .loe and Jane ()rdinary’s stories'.’ And what happens if prejudice has ensured your story won‘t be heard'.’
Both Glasgow and lidinburgh have people‘s museums that show what life was like for the usually uncelebrated masses. with exhibits recreating the to and fro of common l'olk. Yet neither museum records one subset of‘ the vox populi: the LGBT community. Over the last two years. the Remember When project has set otit to collect artelacts and oral histories from Edinburgh‘s queer people for a major exhibition at the City Art Centre. entitled R(Illll)()ll‘ ('itv: .S'tm'iesfrmii Lesbian. Gay. Bisexual and 'I)‘mt.vgem/¢‘r lit/inhum/i.
‘lt's never been done in Scotland before: it‘s a major breakthrough.. says project worker Brian Thompson. 'Unless you‘ve actually got something you can look back on. how do you place yourself in history? It gives the LGBT community a basis. and it validates that community within lidinburgh.‘
As well as everyday tales. the project sought out the input of activist organisations and also people who regard themselves as isolated. ‘We started off with a target ol‘ 50 interviews and we've done l()5.' continues Thompson. ‘liach history was valid; none were more important than others. Part of the project was to involve the community — we‘ve had more than bf) volunteers in the last two years.‘
Plans for the exhibition itself include the recreation of' an activist‘s flat from the l97()s. complete with a
62 THE LIST 2? Apr—1 1 May 2006
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Writers of social history often miss out the lives of LGBT people.
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obin Lee looks at how the Remember When project’s new exhibition is re-telling these stories.
telephone playing Lesbian and (lay Switchboard training calls and a television showing pro-diversity l‘ilms. Another installation is the ‘corridor of fear".
which visitors walk down to be assailed by newspaper
headlines and voices denouncing ‘deviants‘. .-\t the end. the corridor opens out into an area resplendent in bright banners and positive messages. It‘s a neat construct as. at one time. the city's l.(iB'l’ centre was down a passageway ol‘l‘ Broughton Street which became known by the same epithet.
An eclectic range of ephemera will be on display. including the sign from bookshop Lavender Menace. first established 25 years ago. a t-shirt from the first official Pride march. and a bi/arre. posthumous painting of the first editor of (lay Scotland inaga/ine. lan Dunn. l)epicted as a nun named Sister Aqua l)eportiva. he is somewhat blasphemously blessing with his right hand and balancing a urinal in the left.
‘I came to lidinburgh in l‘)7l from New York ('ity. l was over here doing a course and was knocked out by the landscape and the people.. informs lillen (iall'ord. a writer and Remember When project worker. She's donated a collection of l.l’s by lesbian singers and icons such as Alix Dohkin. Meg ('hristian. Joan Armatrading and Bette .Vlidler. who were popular on both sides of. the Atlantic. 'We‘vc had schoolkids and people in their sixties involved in this project it's a real ghetto-blisting activity.’
Rainbow City: Stories from Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Edinburgh, City Art Centre, Edinburgh, Sat 6 May-Sun 9 Jul.
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TOP TIPS FOR THIS FORTNIGHT
Joan Collins Bow down to the queen diva, peerless Dynasty acme. and star of The Bitch and The Stud. who deigns to visit our capital crty! The wasp-like treasure will be holding forth on her life and career. accompanied by Four Pools and a Piano (pictured). So it's not all good. And there was that business with her joining the UK Independence Party. Oh well. Catch her before she dies. Usher Hall, Edinburgh, Tue 9 May.
>t= Joy Fans of Joy in its current location. the Venue. have one more chance to catch it there before the block on Calton Road falls into the hands of the ‘developers'. The usual crew of Maggie and Alan Joy and Brett King spin hard— edged house on the main floor. while Trendy Wendy and Sally F provide frothy fun downstairs. The Venue, Edinburgh, Sat 6 May.
>l< Rainbow City: Stories from Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Edinburgh A first for Scotland: a major exhibition chronicling the lives and contributions of queer people in the capital. Mixing memorabilia with audio histories. and divided into four themed zones. the exhibition is curated by the social history project Remember When. See feature. left. City Art Centre, Edinburgh, Sat 6 May—Sun 9 Jul.
=i< Velvet The club voted Scotland '5 best women‘s venue by Pink Paper readers channels Mother Shipton for a night of mystery and tricks. Glad's Night of Magic and Fortune will feature table magic and tarot readings. the latter a snip at only £15for 20 minutes' view into the future. Remember, the cards never lie. Unlike the national lottery or the gee—gees. Mariners, Edinburgh, Sat 6 May.