Gay Photographer George Daniell’s Work Will (Finally) Be on Display at a New Miami Beach Museum

He was an openly gay photographer who took photos for well-known magazines like Time, Life and Esquire — and whose work has been featured in the Smithsonian, MoMA, the Chicago Institute of Art and elsewhere — but some of the most homoerotic work of George Daniell has never been seen by the public. Thankfully a new Miami Beach LGBTQ museum, The George Daniell Museum, is about to open its doors and showcase some of his never-before-seen photography to the world.

Opening its doors April 3, 2019, to coincide with Miami Beach Pride events, the George Daniell Museum will feature the prominent American photographer’s full collection of work. In addition to his photos of massive celebrities (Audrey Hepburn, Sophia Loren, Lena Horne and Georgia O’Keefe among them), his more personal work features some incredibly homoerotic and sensual shots that will be showcased at the opening of this new Miami Beach LGBTQ museum.

We have the estate of George Daniell and the German organization Zentraldepot to thank for unearthing the collection, which consists of photographs, paintings and aquarelles from the years 1920–1991.

“The new George Daniell Museum will be of great interest to both the LGBTQ and the mainstream communities, to see the both the glamour and grit of yesteryear, with a strong dose of homoeroticism,” says Helmut Schuster, Director of the George Daniell Museum. “We are thrilled that the public will finally be able to see these images in their entirety.”

The museum is the first Miami Beach LGBTQ museum to open, while the nation’s largest LGBTQ museum, the Stonewall National Museum & Archives, is found in neighboring Fort Lauderdale.

The George Daniell Museum will open inside the Wilzig Museum Building in South Beach, a multi-museum complex that hopes to welcome other international museums in the coming years. Currently the World Erotic Art Museum is also present in the building, which features a permanent exhibit dedicated to the life of sex researcher Alfred Kinsey.

A grand opening celebration of the George Daniell Museum will take place on Wednesday, April 3 at 6 p.m., in conjunction with the World Erotic Art Museum as part of Miami Beach Pride Week. The event will be free to attend and open to the public. A George Daniell pop-up shop will offer limited-edition prints and books by the artist.

See more work by American photographer George Daniell here:

Head here for more info on the new Miami Beach LGBTQ Museum, the George Daniell Museum.

Featured image: “Untitled” St. Marinella (Italy) 1955 © George Daniell Estate