An exhibition titled "The First Homosexuals" has opened at Wrightwood 659 in Chicago, curated by queer art historian Jonathan David Katz and associate curator Johnny Willis. Spanning over 300 artworks, the show traces how the coining of the term "homosexual" by Hungarian writer Karl-Maria Kertbeny in 1868 reframed artistic expressions of identity and sexuality, featuring works by artists such as Hokusai, Utamaro, Bertel Thorvaldsen, George Catlin, Saturnino Herrán, Richmond Barthé, Romaine Brooks, and Tamara de Lempicka. The exhibition includes sections on pre-colonial indigenous cultures, colonialism and resistance, and queer art icons.
The exhibition matters because it challenges the restrictive binary imposed by the term "homosexual," arguing that art has historically provided a more fluid and liberated space for queer desire. By juxtaposing works from before and after the term's invention, Katz highlights how colonialism exported homophobic attitudes globally, while artists resisted and celebrated diverse sexual identities. This show reframes queer art history as a continuum rather than a category, offering a critical perspective on how language and visual culture intersect in shaping identity.