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Up Close Reading Group:
Being Straight
Institute of Contemporary Arts
Talks & Learning

A monthly reading group on sex and desire.

Though sexual categories proliferate, and the old moralisms around monogamy continue to fray, there are few offline spaces in which to discuss sex and desire. From sex scandals and dating apps to cottagecore and cruising, what does it mean to talk about sex and desire in the contemporary moment? And what might art, literature and contemporary culture tell us about how our desires are shaped?

Over six sessions, academics and writers Sita Balani and Bryony White lead a series of close readings and discussions centred on key texts in contemporary literature and culture. It’s advisable, but not mandatory, to have read the texts prior to the session. Participants are encouraged to share thoughts and feelings.
Being Straight

Recommended Readings:

Heteropessimism by Asa Seresin 
In Defense of Men by Sophia Giovannitti

Bryony White is a writer and is currently Assistant Professor of Theatre and Performance studies at the University of Warwick. She has published in LA Review of Books, Elephant, frieze, TLS and The White Review.

Sita Balani is a writer and teacher living in London. She is the co-author of Empire’s Endgame: Racism and the British State (Pluto Books, 2021). Her book Deadly and Slick: The Sexual Life of Race in Britain is forthcoming with Verso in 2023. She has published in Open Democracy, Vice, Novara Media, Five Dials and The White Review.