A Room of One's Own

An exhibition of contemporary queer art by Mark Mann

28 January - 4 April 2025

Mark Mann is a Norfolk-based artist who uses the seductive qualities of ceramics and textiles to explore queer identity self-expression. In this exhibition, inspired by the domestic interiors created by men in a time before the legalisation of homosexuality, floral prints, ceramic tiles and carefully curated upholstery weave through the casts, drawing out a history of queer censorship and public punishment. Together, the works use the visual language of interior decor, so often dismissed as mere window-dressing, to create a show which is equal parts beguiling and compelling.

The phrase 'a room of one's own' may have been popularised by Virginia Wolf, but the words were originally written by the writer Lytton Strachey in a love letter to the painter Duncan Grant, both members of the Bloomsbury set. These men yearned for a space which they could define on their own terms, away from the prying eyes of a hostile heteronormative world. In a time before the decriminalisation of homosexuality, domestic interiors were a canvas upon which queer individuals might curate their identity: domestic objects and decor offered a stage for queer self-expression.

Green subway tiles, with the words 'Acts of Gross Indecency', within a frame. Artwork by Mark Mann.

Mark Mann, Acts of Gross Indecency. Cast earthenware tiles in an antique frame. Copyright: the artist.

'For this exhibition, I wanted to create a collection of works inspired by the bravery of the queer interior,' says Mann. 'The meaning for me is very much in the materials I use: I enjoy the idea that I use finely-crafted facades to conceal ugly realities within my design work.' The contrast between the soft furnishings and the hard histories they embody is deliberately disarming. As this exhibition shows, the classical body has long been a place for queer desire. But by bringing the classical home, Mann brings into focus how an aesthetic inspired and framed by the antique provided a locus for queer identity and visibility at this very particular juncture of queer history. And in this show, Mann's art ensures that history is no longer hidden behind closed doors.

Exhibition works are available for purchase through Gray Area Gallery.

About the artist

Mark Mann is an artist who works with textile, ceramics and bronze, predominantly drawing on classical iconography and queer themes. Following a first degree in Fine Art and Psychology from Oxford Brooks University and an MA in Textile Design from Norwich University of the Arts, Mann studied Art Education at Homerton College, University of Cambridge. Mann's passion for textiles stems from a family history of needlework and quilting. Mann’s work juxtaposes the discomfort of queer pasts with the comfort of luxury items. Mann is especially interested in asking the viewer to confront difficult histories and challenge pre-conceived notions around homosexuality.

Mark Mann is represented by Gray Area Gallery in Norwich, whose director, Kenza Gray, co-curated this exhibition with Mann.

Artist Mark Mann standing outside his studio, with a bird on his shoulder

Artist Mark Mann, standing outside his studio. Photograph: Marie-Laurence Boisvert. Copyright: the artist.

About Gray Area Gallery

Gray Area Gallery is a new contemporary art gallery that has opened in Norwich with a focus on under-represented voices and mediums in the art world. They represent and exhibit artists that are breaking boundaries and pushing limits. Holding a fully curated exhibition almost every month, the space is always changing and there is always something new to discover, from Japanese Edo period prints to contemporary Queer ceramics.