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What do you picture when you hear the word “archives”? Old and dusty documents, preciously held away by a white-bearded elder? Think again! Although the AGQ does have a few of those, we also have splendid collections of photographs, paintings, films, many books, and a vast quantity of varied artefacts related to LGBTQ2S+ communities. One day, perhaps, when we are rich, will we be able to open a small museum?
On top of a breath of fresh air after many months of confinement, July 2021 came with a wide array of additions to our iconographic collections. Three important donations added significantly to them.
In early July, the Quebec Gay Archives received many boxes from Denis Lessard, archivist, in which there were books, drawings, periodicals, booklets, bookmarks, newspaper clippings, and varied annotated articles and documents related to homoerotic and gay art. Most notably, this donation includes a portrait of pornographic film actor and producer Al Parker (1952-1992), drawn by Gary Hatcher (1983). This laminated drawing was autographed by Al Parker himself, on the occasion of a visit in Montreal.
Later, in mid-July, Québec City collector Yves Beauregard donated 686 postcards and a few photographs from many different countries, related to the male figure across the ages. This donation is a wonderful addition to an already extensive postcard collection that Mr. Beauregard began to donate to the AGQ in 2017. The shown postcard should give you an idea of the uniqueness of this collection.
Still in Mid-July, another donation was entrusted to the Quebec Gay Archives by Bernard Mulaire, a long-time friend of our organization. It consists of a large photograph (more than 1.5 x 1 m of size) showing a couple, André Landry and Alain Bouchard (the latest of whom is seen sitting in an armchair), that would be separated by death soon after the photograph was taken. The artwork is called Je m’ouvre au matin comme l’éveil / Et pourtant j’ai le regard figé sur la fin (1993), title given by Alain Bouchard (1954-1994). André Landry has now been living in Paris for the past 25 years. In addition to this splendid photograph, Mr. Mulaire also donated a series of six photographs (30 x 28 cm), titled Comme la vague (1993), which completes the first artwork. This donation also includes other documents related to André Landry.
A very warm thank you to these three donors who greatly enriched our iconographic collections.
Taking inspiration from queer mapping projects Queering the Map and Mapping Montreal’s Queer Spaces, the project Walls have ears: The Stories of LGBTQ2S+ Spaces seeks to not only put the diverse experiences of LGBTQ2S+ people on a map, but also to render them audible and combine different types of media. 
