Queer > Bisexual Archives - Page 2 of 3

Bessie Smith

Acknowledged as one of the greatest blues singers of the twentieth century, Bessie Smith reigned as the “Empress of the Blues” throughout most of the 1920s.

Dorothy Wilde divided her time between London and Paris, where she was, for a time, the toast of salons, celebrated for her wit, intelligence, and physical likeness to her uncle Oscar, as whom she used to dress up.

Mary Shelley

English author of Frankenstein

Djuna Barnes

She acted and wrote plays for Provincetown Theater in Massachusetts; she also became a highly paid journalist. In 1921, she was sent to Paris by McCall’s Magazine to study and write about the expatriate movement. She became friends with famous writers and artists including Mina Loy. She frequently visited Natalie Barney’s salon, to read and discuss literature. It was the environment at Barney’s salon that inspired Barnes to write Ladies Almanack (American Women).

Isadora Duncan

American dancer and teacher

Lani Ka’ahumanu

Lani Ka’ahumanu, a leader of the bisexual rights movement in the U.S., has worked for greater visibility for bisexuals both within the LGBTQ movement as well as broader society. An author, community organizer, and health advocate, she has been a driving force behind the fight against biphobia since 1980.

Nan Goldin

Most famously working through themes of love, gender, domesticity, and sexuality, Goldin used her personal experiences to visualise the political nature of these subjects, especially when subjugated by social taboos and expectations.

Nell Blaine

Though not recognized as widely as she should be, Nell Blaine’s career stands as a microcosm of post-World War II stylistic tendencies – from gestural Abstract Expressionism to the geometries of pure abstraction and eventually to a lyrical realism that included still lifes, landscapes, and interior views.

Dora Carrington

Carrington never achieved fame as an artist during her lifetime. This can be attributed the fact that she rarely exhibited, or even signed, her work, along with the fact that she was not working in the most current styles.

Marlene Dietrich

One of the most popular film and music stars of the 1930s and 1940s, Marlene Dietrich was known for her fashionable style and diverse portrayals of loose women. She was a firm advocate for the American war effort, contributing much of her time, energy and musical talents to aid the troops.