18 June 2026
Hosted by drag legend Mystika Glamoor, the event brought together a curated programme of artists, academics and activists.
This year’s Showcase featured contributions exploring everything from local queer histories in Nottingham, what happens when systems flag you as a ‘queer error’, how queer bodies complicate the garment industry, and the sounds and sonics of queer people’s digital intimate lives.
The Showcase kicked off with presentations from CJ De Barra on ‘Notts Queer History Archive’, followed by Natasha Burton on ‘Rainbow Mind – Communities Without Shame’; and Gareth Evans-Jones on ‘The Politics of Being an Error: How Systems Decide Who Counts’.
The second half of the event involved presentations from bodypoetic (also known as Florence Walker) on ‘The Queer Potentiality of The Glitch’; Imo Emah on ‘Queering Body Datafication Through Garment Production Processes’; and Mathew Hick on ‘Hearing Dirty Flows of Data’.
Dr Kevin Guyan, Director of the Gender + Sexuality Data Lab and co-organiser of the Showcase, said:
Everyone did amazingly! It’s a big ask to invite people share work in a way that is fun, accessible and engaging. The Queer Data Showcase is a vital reminder that research about LGBTQ lives and experiences intersects all parts of society – and that sharing this work needs to happen in ways that depart from tired (and boring) academic traditions.
Dr Sam Bennett, co-lead of the AI Ethics & Society research group and co-organiser of the Showcase, said:
The Showcase is a space for queer folks to connect in times of increasing datafication, a place for authenticity, creativity and resistance. Talks spoke to what works for us, what doesn’t – and asked what data are we creating that reflects our collective histories, current challenges and future hopes?
The Showcase was co-organised by the Gender + Sexuality Data Lab, AI Ethics & Society and the ERC-funded Algorithmic Societies project (ALGOSOC). The Showcase was kindly funded by Prof. Louise Amoore who leads ALGOSOC.
