Gay culture celebrated in new on-line museum

An on-line museum about gay culture and history launches tomorrow, designed by Lemon Foundation.

Proud Heritage appointed Lemon in February, on the recommendation of Thoughtworks, the development company overseeing the project.

While Lemon received a fee, Thoughtworks offered its services for free to fulfil its corporate responsibility remit, claims the museum’s executive director, Jack Gilbert.

Gilbert says that he developed the Proud Heritage name and brand with the help of Visit Britain.

‘I asked Lemon not to overuse the rainbow, and [suggested] that we want the website to appeal to, and have interest for, everyone – not just lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans-gender people. I chose the name Proud, because pride is not limited to lesbian and gay people, ’ says Gilbert.

Proud Heritage also briefed Lemon to create a simple look for the site, www.proudheritage.org. ‘Too many museum sites are confusing to the eye, so we also wanted a design that had clear eye-paths,’ says Gilbert.

The museum will feature a guide to gay heritage walking-trails, a biographic interview with gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, and archive material exploring gay relationships and the history of gay rights.

Proud Heritage is inviting digital consultancies to approach it about working on future on-line exhibitions.