Qtopia Debuts Six New Exhibitions In Time For Mardi Gras

It’s been a deeply rewarding effort for Qtopia Curatorial Director George Savoulis and his team to simultaneously open six new exhibitions at Sydney’s premier location for learning about Australian queer history. 

Speaking to the Star Observer, George says: “It’s been a long time in the works, it’s been in the works as soon as Qtopia opened back in February. And we’ve waited until 2025 to have some exhibitions that run parallel to Mardi Gras and celebrate the community!” 

Each exhibition highlights different aspects of the local queer community; see the history of Mardi Gras through a number of iconic costumes, or the life story of drag icon Joyce Maynge. 

See Hung, a new collection by Archibald finalist Jason Jowett that explores his relationship with online dating, or explore the LGBTQI+ community’s relationship to Kylie Minogue in an exhibition about fandom and reverence. Take a look at Qtopia’s selection of lesbians leaving an impact on society, and celebrate 25 years of DNA Magazine with a video montage about why the male body is still so taboo.

Variety is essential for Qtopia

For George, having a wide range of exhibitions is essential to the function of Qtopia. “It’s incredibly important to what we do. I view my job as providing a platform for the community to tell their stories, and it’s really difficult because we can’t do them all at once. Our community is as diverse as society itself, and there are thousands of stories to tell.”

George came to Qtopia after years of working as an architect and creative director across the world, and especially at Mardi Gras in Sydney. However, when Qtopia opened, he saw a fantastic opportunity.

“I reached out and I said ‘I’m here, I’ve done this work, can I help?’” he explains. “And I was very lucky to work with Liz Bradshaw, the head curator at the time, on the opening exhibitions, but this is the first set of exhibitions I’m opening on my own.”

Though George is spearheading the curation efforts this time, he explains that community support plays a huge role in the creation of exhibitions. “A community-first focus is one of my big things,” he says. “Everything that I do for these exhibitions involves community consultation, and the community love here is phenomenal.”

A deep sense of community

He explains it best with the feedback to the Kylie Minogue & Queer Devotion exhibition, which is less about Kylie herself and more the unique relationship her fans have with her. The exhibition features a huge array of Kylie memorabilia, a celebration of her Mardi Gras appearances and painstakingly recreated Kylie outfits by Millie Minogue that’s a must-visit for any fan of the Australian gay icon. 

But according to George, that’s just a smattering of what they received from the community: “I put out a call for the Kylie exhibition and we got so many offerings that I had too much to put into the exhibition space! I had to select down, which is a wonderful position to be in.” 

Similar work has gone into exhibits like the Mardi Gras outfits exhibition, which features everything from clothing worn at the original Mardi Gras to iconic fixtures of the parade like the Lemonheads. It all ties into Qtopia’s mission statement; to be a storyteller of Australian LGBTQI+ history, and to give both those who lived it and those now learning it a safe space. 

Given increased hostilities towards queer folks in both Australia and the world at large, George comments on why now is an important moment for these 6 exhibitions to debut: “We’ve used glitter, flamboyance and sparkle as weapons in our activism, and we’re telling that story this time around in these new exhibitions.” 

“It shows that we stand proud with our drag family. It shows that Sydney Mardi Gras has its own strong visual language, and that’s why it’s so important to support it and see its history at places like Qtopia. It shows that we’re going to stay alive, and that we’re not going to disappear.” 

All six new exhibitions at Qtopia open on Sunday, February 9th.