Queer Silence in Art Historiography Practices: Reflections on Disciplinary Desexualization in Portugal

Abstract

The historiography of art in Portugal has systematically neglected queer narratives, reflecting a long-standing process of disciplinary desexualization. This omission marginalizes dissident sexual artists and limits our understanding of how their sexual identities have shaped artistic production. The dominance of a nationalist paradigm — combined with a focus on stylistic and formal concerns — has contributed to the silencing of practices that embrace an aesthetic of attitude: provocative, political, transgressive, and centered on questions of sexual “difference” and the expression of marginalized subjectivities.

This essay proposes a critical reflection on the traditional practices of Portuguese art history and their inadequacy in addressing gender, identity, and sexuality beyond the heterosexual norm. Drawing on artists and authors who challenge the cis-heterosexual canon, we lay the groundwork for imagining a queer art history in Portugal. The analysis unfolds along three axes: an introduction to queer theory and the emergence of the “Other” as a legitimate subject of art historical inquiry; a critical reading of historiographical desexualization in the Portuguese context; and finally, a reflection on how to interpret and resist the persistent silencing of queer artists. By questioning existing paradigms, this essay seeks to deconstruct the notion of isolated cases and to contribute to the expansion of the field towards more inclusive readings of artistic production.