While sexually-explicit images have been produced as long as humans could make pictures, the category of pornography is a much more modern invention. It was introduced in the 1800s as a way to classify images deemed obscene and thought to corrupt morals.

In this talk Dr João Florêncio will take us on a freefall journey through that history. Discover how sex, morality, and visual culture intersect to tell a story about our societal fears, anxieties, and sense of propriety.

Speaker

João Florêncio

Senior Lecturer
History of Modern and Contemporary Art and Visual culture
University of Exeter

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Dr João Florêncio researches queer visual histories of the body, sexuality, and sexual subcultures. He is the author of Bareback Porn, Porous Masculinities, Queer Futures: The Ethics of Becoming-Pig (Routledge, 2020).