CFP -- Queer Sanctity: Contemporary Visions of Medieval and Renaissance Art
due Sunday 15 March 2026
https://differentvisions.org/queer-sanctity-call-for-participation/
I'm pleased to share a CFP for a volume I'm editing: https://differentvisions.org/queer-sanctity-call-for-participation/
Different Visions is an on-line journal dedicated to innovative scholarship on medieval art, and in partnership with them, Queer Sanctity: Contemporary Visions of Medieval and Renaissance Art will be a virtual exhibition and catalogue of work from scholars at any stage of their career (from undergrads to post docs to professors, curators, artists, and more). The focus will be on LGBTQIA2+ artists working in North America (Canada, Mexico, and the US) from about the 1980s to the present who draw inspiration from medieval and Renaissance art, whether directly or indirectly. The chronological limits of medieval/Renaissance and contemporary are quite flexible, as are the queer and trans approaches that we hope to represent by the volume / virtual exhibition.
This project is taking shape beyond the bounds of a museum or gallery, since those constraints were posing challenges to embarking on the collaborative work of creating spaces to share research on the attraction, critiques, or ruptures between LGBTQIA2+ creators, premodern art, and the institutions where these works are found (be they museum, gallery, religious setting, bathhouse, bar, archive, etc.).
There has been a surge of art historical research on queerness/transness in the premodern world, as well as monographic exhibitions devoted to queer/trans contemporary artists and their individual relationships with religion, visual culture, etc. Equally rich is the bibliography on queer/trans European and Brazilian artists working in historicizing modes. With this project, we're hoping to bridge art history, curation, religious studies, and more.
Another goal is to be intentional about expanding beyond Christian histories and visual traditions (Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant, etc.) to include Jewish, Islamic, and other religions from the premodern world that create those temporal connections between past and present.
At the above link, you'll see the official CFP, as well as a video introduction I recorded. We're asking interested participants to fill out a Google Form (also linked on the CFP) with the type of contribution they might like to produce: a longer scholarly essay, a shorter object entry, a reflection piece, a video / multimedia work, an interview, etc.
One of the things I love about Different Visions is the creative flexibility we have.