The High Commission of Canada in the United Kingdom, in collaboration with Southampton City Art Gallery, presents a new exhibition at Canada Gallery by British-Canadian artist Lucy Ash that sheds light on stories of forgotten figures, diversity, and courage from LGBTIQ+ history. Through painting, film and sound, Invisible Portraits brings together cultural figures whose lives reflect both visibility and erasure, such as poet Wilfred Owen and filmmaker Derek Jarman, alongside a series of deeply personal works developed by the artist following the tragic homophobic assault on Ian Baynham in Trafalgar Square in 2009. The exhibition highlights the ongoing struggle for equality, freedom and social justice.

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Images : (Left) Lucy Ash, Wilfred Owen, 2020 (oil on paper); (centre) Lucy Ash, Simeon Solomon, 2022 (oil on linen); (right) Lucy Ash, 13.10.2009, 2022 (oil on linen)

Invisible Portraits unfolds as a series of reflections on visibility and invisibility; what it means to be seen and what is at risk of being lost, again. At the centre of the exhibition is a series of works reflecting on the death of Ian Baynham, following the homophobic assault in Trafalgar Square in 2009. Lucy Ash knew Ian, and the event marked a turning point in her practice, prompting a more explicitly political engagement with LGBTIQ+ lives.

Working in oil, mixed media and film, she develops series of works, weaving personal stories with themes of time and concealment to explore love, loss, death and injustice. Works in this exhibition created in Ian’s memory include a portrait in oil on linen of Ian’s sister Jen Baynham, and a 31-minute film addressing grief, violence, and the lasting impact of loss.

Reflecting on the exhibition’s location, Lucy Ash says: “Showing this work in Trafalgar Square is profoundly poignant for me. The attack on Ian happened just moments away from the gallery, so his presence is inescapable here. At the same time, the view towards Whitehall and the Cenotaph connects directly to the works on the challenge gay men faced during the First World War.”

Ian’s death was the catalyst for a deeper study of the history of concealment and erasure. Portraits of cultural figures, including Derek Jarman and Simeon Solomon, reflect lives shaped by both creative brilliance and social constraint, while portraits of artists, including Keith Vaughan and Duncan Grant, draw attention to the necessity of living partially hidden lives in the face of criminalisation and stigma.

In portraits of Wilfred Owen, Siegfried Sassoon and Canadian poet John McCrae, Lucy Ash considers the “necessary invisibility” of gay men during the First World War and how private identities were suppressed. The exhibition’s location lends even greater resonance. Situated in Trafalgar Square and in close proximity to Whitehall and the Cenotaph, it draws a direct line between personal and public acts of remembrance.

The Canada Gallery exhibition follows on from a major collaboration between Lucy Ash and Southampton City Art Gallery between 2020 and 2023, where the artist engaged with works by LGBTIQ+ artists in the collection. Selected works from that exhibition are shown here, including two large-scale panels from the Southampton community-led Portraits of Inspiration project, which celebrate LGBTIQ+ role models on both sides of the Atlantic, and point to LGBTIQ+ progress as not just an individual but collective effort.

Reflecting on the exhibition, Lucy Ash says: “It’s a show about people and their lives and their truths, and the lives they couldn’t live openly. I want it to reflect the progress that has been made, but also how that progress feels fragile, and increasingly under threat.”

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Images: (left) Lucy Ash, Portraits of Inspiration, Panel 01, 2020-22 (acrylic on canvas on plywood); (right) Lucy Ash, Portraits of Inspiration, Panel 02, 2020-22 (acrylic on canvas on plywood) Photos: Joe Low Photography

His Excellency, the Honourable William Blair, High Commissioner for Canada in the United Kingdom, says: “Marking the launch of Pride Month, Canada Gallery’s upcoming exhibition Invisible Portraits reflects Canada’s longstanding commitment to the promotion and protection of human rights, inclusion and diversity, both at home and internationally. Through Lucy Ash’s deeply resonant work, this exhibition creates space for reflection on histories that were silenced and the continued importance of equality, visibility and dignity for 2SLGBTQI+ communities. As part of the High Commission of Canada, Canada Gallery is an essential platform to share the voices of Canadian artists here in the UK. I am proud to see Canadian culture and creativity fostering dialogue and understanding, and underscore Canada’s leadership in advancing equality, social justice, and respect for human rights worldwide.”