Magnus Hirschfeld (1868-1935)
Words by X, handkerchief by Robin Scarlett
Dr Magnus Hirschfeld was a sexologist, sexual reformer, doctor, humanitarian and outright pioneer of queer studies in all its many hues. Much of the radical work began by Hirschfeld went on to inform modern thinking on homosexuality and transgender issues.
Best known for founding the Institute of Sexual Science (1919-33) in Berlin, the doctor’s work focused on defining sexual orientation and gender identity, believing it to be a mutable and natural occurrence, a revolutionary observation for the time. His unprecedented strides in gender identity led to one of his most groundbreaking operations, on a transgender woman named Lili Elbe, the inspiration for 2015 movie The Danish Girl.
Europe’s fashionable elite flocked to visit the Institute’s museum and consultation rooms but it was forcibly closed, and its vast scientific findings destroyed, when Hitler seized power in 1933. Magnus continued to advocate for sexual and racial minorities until his death in France in 1935. In 1990, the Magnus Hirschfeld Medal was established in celebration of the WHO declassifying homosexuality as a mental disorder.
This artwork is part of The Wall of Sexual Heroes, a collaborative textile art piece featured in our previous exhibitions at the Horse Hospital (2022) and Bow Arts Lab (2023). All embroidered, printed and appliquėd handkerchiefs celebrate unsung heroes of sexual emancipation, activism and innovation.
The Wall is an organic work. If you would like to contribute, please get in touch with The Keeper.
