Hello Sailor! Exhibit Set To Sail Away Soon

There's still time to view the Hello Sailor! Gay Life on the Ocean Wave exhibit at the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic. The exhibit will close Nov. 27.

Focusing on gay culture as part of seafaring life from the 1950s to present day, Hello Sailor! is adapted from an exhibit created by National Museums Liverpool in England.

The Maritime Museum of the Atlantic conducted additional research for the exhibit with local members of the lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgendered and intersex, or LGBTI community. Five gay mariners voluntarily participated, contributing personal anecdotes, photos and items for the exhibit.

"I'd like to thank National Museums Liverpool, the Merseyside Maritime Museum and our local research participants for their contribution toward the exhibit," said David Wilson, Minister of Communities, Culture and Heritage. "Our museum achieved its goal in exploring the topic in an insightful and respectful way."

More than 77,000 people, from local visitors to international cruise ship passengers, visited the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic since the exhibit's opening in May. About 6,200 people visited the museum during the Halifax Pride Festival in July.

The exhibit's run at the museum marks its first appearance in North America. Hello Sailor! has received local, national and international media coverage, including a recent feature on the radio program Q with Jian Ghomeshi and coverage in Macleans magazine.

"It is our hope that Hello Sailor! has generated dialogue around an aspect of Maritime life that has been traditionally under represented," said Kim Reinhardt, manager of the Maritime Museum. "Perhaps it will open doors for new research in this area."

One of the research participants will speak on his experiences at a public talk at the museum on Thursday, Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. The date marks the nineteenth anniversary of the Canadian Navy's decision to allow members of the LGBTI community to serve openly in the navy.

For more information on the exhibit or the public talk visit http://maritime.museum.gov.ns.ca or call 902-424-7490.