To celebrate Pride Month, we are delving into The Ingram Collection to highlight artists whose work explores lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer identities.

David Hockney (b. 1937) 

My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean, 1962 © The Artist

A painter, draughtsman, printmaker, photographer and designer, Hockney is considered one of the most influential British artists of the twentieth century. Hockney’s brave and sensual work explores his sexuality, capturing his romances and anxieties at a time when a homosexual act was still illegal in the UK.

Dora Carrington (b. 29 March 1893 – 11 March 1932)

Dora Carrington, Iris Tree on a Horse, c.1920s © The Estate of Dora Carrington

Dora Carrington was an English painter and designer, but her work received very little recognition during her lifetime. She was, however, well known for her association with the Bloomsbury Group, which embraced sexual equality and freedom. This small portrait portrays Iris Tree, who was an actress and poet with a racy reputation, as Joan of Arc, and it is thought that she liked the painting so much that she carried it on her person in her pocket.

Keith Vaughan (b. 1912 – 1977)

Two Standing Figures, 1956 © The Artist

English painter Keith Vaughan received no formal art training and developed his skills and knowledge whilst working for an advertising agency. He is best known for his paintings of the male nude - often telling stories of perseverance, sacrifice and alienation - a bold choice for a gay man at a time when homosexuality was illegal. When his journals were published, they revealed that sexuality and depression played a leading role in informing his artistic practice.

Victoria Sin (b. 1991) 

Part Thee/Cthulhu Through the Looking Glass, 2017 © The Artist

Recent graduate from the Royal College of Art, Victoria Sin's work explores drag and image representations of femininity as well as queer feminist POC (person of colour) representation. Working across performance, moving image, writing, installation and print, Sin uses drag as a tool to challenge expectations and attitudes on femininity.

The Ingram Collection is one of the largest and most significant publicly accessible collections of Modern British Art in the UK, available to all through a programme of public loans and exhibitions. Founded in 2002 by serial entrepreneur and philanthropist Chris Ingram, the collection now spans over 100 years of British art and includes over 600 artworks. More than 400 of these are by some of the most important British artists of the twentieth century, amongst them Edward Burra, Lynn Chadwick, Elisabeth Frink, Barbara Hepworth and Eduardo Paolozzi.