Myths & Muses: Queering the V&A

Myths and Muses: Queering the V&A is a new film created by 10 queer artists, supported by the V&A Young People’s team. The work invites viewers to follow mysterious characters on an intimate, reflective journey through the museum.

About the film

Led by Adobe Creative Resident Luca Bosani in collaboration with choreographer Malik Nashad Sharpe and Costume Designer Lambdog1066, the film positions these young people as fluid identities, queer souls, and friendly ghosts inhabiting the historical spaces of the museum. Through playing, hiding, finding themselves, and losing themselves, this short film celebrates the V&A as place for exploring and reclaiming identities, weaving queer voices into the fabric of art and history.

Luca Bosani worked closely with a talented group of queer young artists to shape this performed piece. Each performer brought their own story and aesthetic to the piece to create dynamic creatures surrounding the stillness of the artifacts in the galleries. The Medieval and Renaissance galleries were selected as grand spaces with rich architectural forms for the artists to explore.

To “queer” the museum, as Luca Bosani describes, is to open its spaces to voices and bodies often missing from conventional narratives. Myths & Muses reinterprets the museum as a space where fluid identities and queer histories take centre stage. This work centres young queer identities inside the museum in a way that is playful, political, & social.

These magical spirits could be seen as queer souls from the past, forgotten throughout time, now returning as ‘phantasmatic ancestors,’ showing us that LGBTQIA+ stories have always existed and always will exist.

In creating this film, young artists brought a variety of skills across acting, dance, performance art and visual art to a shared process together with lead artists Luca and Malik.

Performer Nina Agathou reflects that ‘the openness and acceptance in the room made it easy to relate, explore and learn new skills in a safe space.’

The content of the film was created through improvisation, rather than by strict pre-planned ideas. This approach meant the young creatives could get to know each other’s unique movement styles and to let go of expectations. ‘By just ‘doing’ and ‘being’ together, we felt free to explore without hesitation. This allowed us to follow directions and trust our instincts without needing to plan the outcome in advance.‘

Bosani sees “queering” is an action, a way of actively shifting how museums and cultural spaces are understood and experienced. This work is created to inspire dialogue around identity, representation, and inclusivity, and encourages viewers to see museums as spaces for all.

To find out more about programmes young creatives can get involved in, visit the Young People webpage.