In 2017, photographer Jane Duong and producer Victoria Firth-Smith created Queerberra to document the lives of Canberra’s LGBTQIA+ community during one of the most emotionally charged moments in Australian queer history—the national postal vote on marriage equality.
As love became a national battleground, queer Canberrans turned to one another. Over weekends spent in bedrooms, workplaces, and on the streets, Duong and Firth-Smith captured portraits of pride, exhaustion, defiance, love, and hope.
When the results came in, Canberra voted ‘yes’ more strongly than any other city—74%. Queerberra launched the very next day, on 16 November 2017. Yet when these portraits were taken, the outcome was uncertain. These are the faces of people whose love was put to a national vote—some already out, some coming out for the first time—all choosing to stand visible and vulnerable.
The project became a time capsule of over 100 portraits spanning the queer spectrum: lovers, elders, drag artists, rainbow families, intersex activists, trans individuals, and more. Queerberra honoured the everyday courage of living authentically, capturing pride not just performed but cultivated—in homes, shared spaces, and chosen families.
Eight years on, this exhibition revisits Queerberra to reflect on what has changed since the passing of the Marriage Equality Act, and to honour the LGBTQIA+ community’s ongoing fight for equality, recognition, and love.
A Loving City: Queerberra Revisited is showing at the Canberra Museum and Gallery (CMAG) from 6 December 2025 until 5 April 2026.
Canberra Museum and Gallery (CMAG)
Cnr London Circuit and City Square, Canberra City
Open 7 days a week:
Monday - Friday: 10am - 4pm
Saturday - Sunday: 12pm - 4pm
The CMAG cafe operates, 8.30am – 3pm Monday to Friday, 12-4pm Saturdays serving drinks and light snacks. Public holidays. Closed some Public Holidays, please refer to this website or phone for information.
Canberra Museum and Gallery is conveniently located close to both parking and public transport options. The City bus interchange is located 200m walk from CMAG on East Row, and many routes also stop along London Circuit. Details of bus services can be found on the ACTION website, or by phoning 13 17 10.
