Playful Summer: A History of Queer Holidays

The exhibition explores how queer people spent their summers in the past. A rich collection of photographs, oral history interviews, documents and literary sources reveals that a significant part of 20th-century queer life took place at cottages, country houses, on trips, holidays and summer camps.

The exhibition presents authentic testimonies in both words and images. How did attempts to establish an exclusively queer tourist cottage outside Prague turn out in the 1930s? What was the Sacred Book of KPJK? What did their cottages mean to queer people? What could be found in the first queer tourist guide to the countries of the socialist bloc from the 1980s? Where did Lambda tours travel?

Curated by Ladislav Jackson, Lukáš Samek and Denisa Vídeňská from the Czech Society for Queer Memory

Admission – free, except on 3 August, when entry is charged as part of the Prague Pride festival opening (150 / 200 CZK)

Accessibility – suitable for children and teens, dog-friendly, wheelchair accessible

Vibe check – standing only, outdoor venue

Trigger warnings – references to the oppression of queer people in the 20th century

Organised by – Czech Society for Queer Memory The Czech Society for Queer Memory is a non-governmental non-profit organisation whose mission is to collect, preserve, research and popularise the history of queer people in the Czech lands. It comprises a museum with a unique collection documenting queer lives (including an oral history sub-collection), an archive of individuals and organisations, and a specialised library containing contemporary literature and periodicals as well as valuable historical prints. The organisation makes its collections, archive and library available to researchers.