Expert discourse, activism, crimes and scandals. For several reasons, including the availability of sources, such topics have been central to research in queer history. While works on these topics have contributed massively to our understanding of the queer past, scholars have increasingly noted a need to ‘move beyond’ this focus. As a result, the ordinary, mundane aspects of queer lives in the past are increasingly coming into focus.
With this conference we want to highlight the history of everyday life and contribute to the ongoing ‘mundane turn’ in queer history. We welcome papers on queer domesticity, intimacy and other topics that center the ordinary rather than the extraordinary.
We are particularly interested in hearing from museum staff and in exploring how museum collections and curatorial work may illuminate the history of queer domesticities and intimacies.
The conference is open for PhD students, established academics, and staff of archives and museums.
The conference will be held at the University of Bergen, in Bergen, Norway from 21 - 22 May, 2026. There will also be a welcome reception in the evening of 20 May.
Topics and questions to explore could include, but are not limited to:
- Domesticity
- Intimacy
- Materiality
- Rurality & small town lives
- Everyday lives in homes away from home (e.g. at sea, on expeditions etc.)
- Queer indigenous history
- Class difference in queer relationships and queer sex
- (Reflections and examples of) queering methodologies and curatorial strategies
- In/visibility
- Queer inarticulacy & discretion
- Ordinariness
- Queer history exhibitions and their receptions
- Collecting queer non-activist material in archives & museums
Please send proposals (max 250 words) and a short bio (100 words) to: queerhistory2026@list.uib.no
In addition to individual papers, we welcome proposals (max 1000 words, not including bios, email etc.) for complete three-to-four-paper panels. Please include the main contact person and their email, plus names, affiliations, emails and bios (max 100 words total per person) for all the participants (including co-authors not planning to attend)
The deadline for proposals is 15 November 2025
We will send out notifications of acceptance by 15 January 2026
The conference will be held in-person, and the conference language is English.
Inquiries: queerhistory2026@list.uib.no
