The Be Seen project, an archival photographic initiative by Anna Hay and Sophie Willison, delves into how LGBTQIA+ lives are shaped by memory, identity, and connection to place. The series highlights the diversity and lived experiences of queer individuals tied to the North Sydney council area, on the lands of the Cammeraygal people. Commissioned by North Sydney council for Pride Month 2026, the portrait exhibition runs from 15 to 30 June at In Transit gallery in North Sydney, New South Wales.
Portraits and Stories
Soph Li Rong Tan at Berry Island Reserve
Soph Li Rong Tan is photographed at Berry Island Reserve. The location holds deep personal significance: her grandfather would visit for bushwalks and play, and as an adult embracing her queerness, she brought her partner there for their first anniversary picnic.
Steven Hankey and Peter Bryant at the Pickled Possum in Neutral Bay
Steven and Peter, friends since the 1990s, met at Helix, a weekly gay social night at the Pickled Possum bar. Steven recalls, 'It was designed for North Shore people who didn’t cross the bridge as often and didn’t spend as much time on Oxford Street.'
Claire at Home in North Sydney
Claire describes her apartment as a 'queer sanctuary.' A standout memory is the 2023 WorldPride march over the Harbour Bridge, which started in North Sydney. 'Having that event start here … and walking over the bridge … I’d never done that kind of walk before, so that was amazing.'
Nata at Berrys Bay Lookout
Nata, a refugee, shares: 'Coming to Australia as a refugee is not an easy journey … Especially being queer in immigration detention. North Sydney area is a real home for me. It’s part of my journey to become an Australian citizen, to be loved, and to be myself.'
Callum Domeney, Eloisa Justa, and Leonora Coenraads at Home in North Sydney
Eloisa says of their shared home: 'The community that we currently have is something that is being built in this house … Living in this sort of queer space with queer housemates … is so nice. It’s very fluid. People come, they go, but ultimately everyone respects each other and it feels like family.'
Kimberly O’Sullivan around Blues Point Road, North Sydney
Kimberly recalls: 'North Sydney was like another country. Crossing that bridge, it was like going into another world. Balls Head Reserve was an unofficial dyke picnic place. We would arrive in carloads, lesbians and dogs always together, and we would take over.'
Lucy, Bronte, and Frankie at Home in Cammeray
Bronte shares: 'We had our baby at North Shore hospital. We did some classes … never met any other two mums or two dads … We’re very intrigued to meet other people at this stage of life and see if there are other people like us around.'
Solomon Frank at Explosives Reserve
Solomon started a queer bushwalking club called Power Botany. 'It’s been a way of cultivating community outside of nightlife spaces, but also an elaborate Ponzi scheme I invented to meet my husband. But that bit’s secret.'
Mariana Messias Campos at Her Mother’s Home in Mosman
Mariana reflects: 'Being from an immigrant household, being queer is still taboo and not necessarily accepted. As a Latinx person on the North Shore, those intersections of my personality were really hard to manage.'
Anonymous at the Coal Loader, Waverton
An anonymous subject says: 'Being near the water reminds me of home … I’m not out to anyone in Hong Kong, in my family. I think my great-grandma might have been queer or a lesbian. She lived with a woman who was her best friend until she died. That’s more fun to live like that.'
Exhibition Details
The exhibition runs from 15 to 30 June 2026 at In Transit gallery, North Sydney. It is part of Pride Month celebrations and aims to celebrate the rich diversity of queer lives in the area.
