Young Queer Artists in the Classroom

This article describes what happened when two young queer artists, Danya Defraytus and Haroon Iltaf, presented their work in a classroom context. The responses from the pupils and the teachers are also reflected upon. These responses indicate something of the potential there is for work by lesbians and gay men to be utilised in classroom contexts. The presentations had various positive outcomes for the school. For example, the teachers involved noticed that Danya and Roonie’s work had useful impact on the pupils’ sense of how they might develop their own, distinct creative practices on the basis of their own unique experiences and perceptions. The students made connections with Danya and Roonie, and could identify with them, in a way that transcended any differences there may have been between them in terms of their sexuality. The approach is therefore being suggested as a model for introducing work that explores lesbian and gay experiences, in a meaningful, useful and amicable way, in a classroom context. The key elements that led to the success of the work are therefore outlined to indicate ways to apply such an approach.