Liverpool arts organisations Homotopia and DuoVision have announced a grant of £142,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund for The Power of Holly – a new exhibition documenting the life and work of pioneering LGBTQ+ musician, songwriter and artist Holly Johnson (Frankie Goes To Hollywood)
The project will explore Johnson’s personal archive and work with Merseyside-based LGBTQ+ sexual health and wellness charity Sahir House, to capture the stories of local LGBTQ+ people in community workshops and oral history sessions over the next year.
The research will conclude with a unique exhibition celebrating the 40th anniversary of Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s meteoric rise to global fame, and explore Holly’s amazing story from Liverpool’s punk scene to international stardom. National Museums Liverpool will support the research and development of this landmark exhibition.
In a direct response to the outreach work, Homotopia and DuoVision will commission local artists to creatively contribute to the project and showcase Liverpool’s rich artistic LGBTQ+ heritage and talent.
“In the ’80s, Holly was one of the musicians whose unapologetic approach to their own sexuality helped shift mainstream understanding and acceptance.”
Homotopia is the UK’s longest running LGBTQ+ arts festival, now in its twentieth year. This year’s festival, themed Gods and Monsters, will include a series of oral history workshops for World AIDS Day – also in conjunction with National Museums Liverpool and Sahir House. Between 29 November and 1 December, a series of oral history sessions will tackle topics including living with HIV, Liverpool’s ’80s music and culture, and remembering those we have lost through HIV and AIDS. Stories captured during these sessions will feature in the forthcoming exhibition.
Holly Johnson said: “The opportunity to mount this exhibition is actually like winning the National Lottery for me! As a teenager, music and art were my passion – reading Jean Genet, William Burroughs and listening to the music of The Beatles, Marc Bolan, David Bowie and The Velvet Underground – seeing the films of Derek Jarman and Andy Warhol along with his super-charged colour paintings. Pondering over Peter Blake’s Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band artwork as a child led me ultimately to Hollywood and back again. Everything I was ever drawn to, through the lens of Queerness and controversy, I have brought with me into the future we live in now.”
James Lawler, Curator at DuoVision, added: “We are excited to carry out this project focusing on the life and work of trailblazing singer, musician and artist Holly Johnson. To see a performer be so open and positive about their sexuality was an affirming and influential experience at a time when homophobia was endemic. In the ’80s, Holly was one of the musicians whose unapologetic approach to their own sexuality helped shift mainstream understanding and acceptance.”
Holly’s story spans a career of over 40 years from his punk days, to global pop stardom, and as a spokesperson for the LGBTQ+ community, we hope to bring this history to light and celebrate the work and life of one of Liverpool’s brightest stars.”
For further information on the festival, CLICK HERE
