Queer Lens: A History of Photography

Edited by Paul Martineau and Ryan Linkof, with contributions by Jordan Bear,
Ken Gonzales-Day, Alexis Bard Johnson, Derek Conrad Murray, and Catherine Opie

Discover how photography helped define queer identity, visibility, and community in this richly illustrated “tour de force.”―Emma Jacob, Aesthetica Magazine

Winner of the 2026 Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ+ Anthology.

“Potent and inspiring. . . . An empowering photography retrospective that reflects American queer communities.”―Aleena Ortiz, Foreword Reviews

From intimate portraits to public protests, Queer Lens: A History of Photography explores the transformative role of photography in LGBTQ+ communities from the 19th century to today. Edited by Paul Martineau and Ryan Linkof, this volume brings together scholars and artists to examine desire, kinship, gender expression, activism, and visibility. Historical photographs and contemporary works reveal how queer people have pictured themselves and challenged restrictive definitions of identity, while lively essays illuminate the intersections of photography and queer life.

This award-winning volume:

• Spans nearly two centuries, connecting photography’s earliest experiments with contemporary expressions of queer identity.
• Features nearly 300 images by some of photography’s most celebrated artists, including Thomas Eakins, Alice Austen, Nan Goldin, Robert Mapplethorpe, Annie Leibovitz, David LaChapelle, Laura Aguilar, Mickalene Thomas, and Paul Mpagi Sepuya.
• Includes essays exploring how race, gender, class, and desire shape queer representation and photographic practice.
• Concludes with a personal afterword by acclaimed photographer Catherine Opie on representation and visibility.

For lovers of photography and LGBTQ+ history, Queer Lens offers a new perspective on the people, images, and relationships that have shaped queer life.

Published to accompany an exhibition held at the J. Paul Getty Museum at the Getty Center from June 17 to September 28, 2025.

Paul Martineau is curator in the Department of Photographs at the J. Paul Getty Museum. He is the author of Rodney Smith (Getty, 2023), Imogen Cunningham (Getty, 2020), and Icons of Style (Getty, 2018). Ryan Linkof is curator at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. 

“An outstanding addition to the growing body of scholarship around queer imagery.”
—Jim Van Buskirk, The Bay Area Reporter

“A deeply significant and beautifully produced volume."

—All About Photo.com

“Eye-catching."

—Matthew Wexler, Queerty.com

“Queer Lens is a visual pleasure and a valuable resource.”
—E. Baden, CHOICE

“A virtuoso demonstration of how art and documentation are frequently inseparable.”
—James Cahill, Artforum

“Above all it depicts an authentic and a deep genuine exploration of LGBTQ+ queer people.”
—Derrick Bradfield, Amateur Photographer

“Bracing and uninhibited.”
—Trevor Fairbrother, the arts fuse

“The volume is a tour de force. . . . It commits to paper an important collective story of creativity, joy and resistance.”
—Emma Jacob, Aesthetica Magazine

“Fantastic.”
—Carolina Miranda, Art Insider

“With contributions from Martineau, Linkof and other prominent voices, this richly illustrated, large-format hardcover offers a vital and timely survey of photography as both an artistic and political tool for queer communities worldwide.”
—Chris Azzopardi, Pride Source 

“[The] catalog, compiled with historian Ryan Linkof, is very good.”
—Christopher Knight, Los Angeles Times

342 pages
9 1/2 x 12 inches
293 color illustrations, 1 gatefold
ISBN 978-1-60606-969-1
hardcover

Getty Publications
Imprint: J. Paul Getty Museum

2025