About us
Founded in 1983, the Quebec Gay Archives have a mandate to acquire, conserve and preserve any handwritten, printed, visual or audio material which testify to the history of the LGBTQ+ communities of Quebec. Our collections are available for public consultation by appointment on weekdays, between 10AM and 3PM.
Our mission
The Quebec Gay Archives have a mandate to acquire, conserve and promote all documentation which relates to the history of LGBTQ+ organizations and individuals in Quebec.
To promote the diversity and the inclusion of LGBTQ+ people.
To continuously update its collection on all aspects of gender and sexuality.
To promote research on sexual minorities and gender and recognition of the contribution of the same to the history of Quebec.
An essential role
Through the conservation of archival fonds and collections, by the organization of public events and by welcoming researchers and visitors to its reading room, the Quebec Gay Archives perform an essential role as guardian of LGBTQ+ history and its promoter both locally and abroad.
Services offered
The Quebec Gay Archives have a mandate to acquire, conserve and preserve any handwritten, printed, visual or audio material which testify to the history of the gay and lesbian communities of Quebec. We possess important collections of magazines, newspapers, press clippings, books, video and audio recordings, posters, photos and archival materials. Members of our team are able to assist researchers by referring them to the appropriate materials in our collections. Some finding aids and research tools are also available for public use. Please see the sections “Resources” and “Collections” for an overview.
These collections are available for public consultation by appointment on weekdays, between 10AM and 3PM.
- (May 4, 2023)
- Love me Gender (May 4, 2023)
The Archives gaies du Québec are collaborating with the Musée de la civilisation de Québec for their upcoming exhibition, Love me Gender. This exhibition aims to demystify and celebrate the plurality of gender identities, by exploring how gender identity has changed over time and evolved across cultures.
The AGQ are loaning eight items to the Musée de la civilisation for this exhibition. The items are testimonials of important historical events and locations for gender and sexual diversity in Québec.
The exhibition will take place from May 18th, 2023 to April 14th, 2024.
- be my ghost « Mémoire branchée sur le désir » (May 4, 2023)
An exhibition of Laura Bottereau and Marine Fiquet’s work following their research conducted at the Archives gaies du Québec (AGQ), during their artist residency in 2021, will take place in Nantes between May 12th and 27th, 2023. Be my ghost associates archive curation and creation. Initiating a posthumous dialogue, the exhibition offers a subjective, sentimental, and political immersion through the archives of Guy Fréchette, poet and photographer who died of AIDS-related illnesses at the age of 43. After his death in 1996, his personal archives were passed on to Jean Logan, his first partner. In 2020, Jean Logan donated the archives to the AGQ. The work of Guy Fréchette remains little-knowned today.
The exhibition Be my ghost will take place from May 12th to May 27th at Bonus – 36 mail des Chantiers – 44300 Nantes. Opening on May 11th at 6 :30 PM.
- Whose History? / Who’s History? (May 4, 2023)
History in the Making (HitM) is one of Canada’s longest running graduate student-organized history conferences, held annually at Concordia University. HitM presents an invigorating interdisciplinary programme of new findings from students and established scholars.
Whose History? / Who’s History? marks the conference’s 28th year, and the AGQ is proud to once again co-present part of the conference. Attendance is free to all on May 5-6, 2023, and the Archives gaies du Québec (AGQ) will introduce the opening keynote titled “The fetish of evidence: archive and queer history” from art historian (and no stranger to the AGQ) August Klintberg in room LB 322 of Concordia University’s Webster Library Building at 11:00 AM on Friday, May 5.
August Klintberg (formerly Mark Clintberg) is an artist who works in the field of art history. He is represented by Pierre-François Ouellette art contemporain in Montreal, and is an Associate Professor in the School of Critical and Creative Studies at the Alberta University of the Arts. His practice studies archives, architectures, and antecedent artworks with a focus on queer histories, identities, and futures.
We’d also suggest attending the keynote by Montréal trans icon, musician and activist Elle Barbara on Saturday, May 6, 2023!
Find further information on the conference at the following links:
Facebook
Eventbrite Registration Day 1:
Eventbrite Registration Day 2: - Jean-Paul Daoust (April 14, 2023)
The March 2023 issue of Lettres Québécoises dedicates a dossier that pays tribute to poet and author Jean-Paul Daoust, compiled by friend of the Archives gaies du Québec Nicholas Giguère.
Very active in the literary and radio scenes, Jean-Paul Daoust received many awards, including the Governor General’s in 1990, and on three occasions, the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec award (1999, 2009, 2020). He has been a strong supporter of the Archives gaies du Québec’s mission, for which he was spokesperson during the 2017 fundraising campaign.
We will continue to hear his unique voice reciting us poems.
