He is considered one of the most influential British artists of the 20th century. In 1963, he painted two men together in the painting ‘Domestic Scene, Los Angeles’, one showering while the other washes his back. Much of his work, including the famous Pool Paintings, featured explicitly gay imagery and themes. He brought to light the challenges and complexities black and LGBT+ people had to face at the time.īorn in Bradford, artist David Hockney's career flourished in the 1960s and 1970s, when he flitted between London and California, where he enjoyed an openly gay lifestyle with friends like Andy Warhol and Christopher Isherwood. In his teen years, American novelist James Baldwin began to feel smothered for being both African-American and gay in a racist and homophobic America.īaldwin escaped to France where he wrote essays critiquing race, sexuality and class structures.
His most controversial relationship was with a young Persian eunuch named Bagoas, who Alexander kissed publicly at a festival of athletics and arts. Alexander the Great was king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon: a bisexual military genius who through the years had many partners and mistresses.
