Fury as Christian martyr St Sebastian is depicted as an Asian transgender man in National Gallery exhibit

By KATHERINE LAWTON, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 11:49, 6 April 2026 | Updated: 11:56, 6 April 2026 A National Gallery exhibit has sparked fury after depicting Christian martyr St Sebastian as an Asian transgender man.  The 3rd century martyr, who secretly aided Christians, was sent to be executed by archers and shot with arrows, before being clubbed to death on the order of the Roman emperor Diocletian, according to traditional belief.  Transgender models are retelling his story in an exhibit by Ming Wong, a Singaporean artist, at the National Gallery in London.  Visitors can view videos across several rooms showing trans figures playing St Sebastian - who is shown listening to a seashell, dancing and performing a martial arts routine.  The new exhibit is intended as a new take on the martyr, with signage for the artwork stating: 'Wong's film reimagines the martyr's narrative within the gallery. 'Latin-speaking Roman soldiers are performed by Asian actors of different genders, alongside the artist himself, staging a dialogue between an ancient past and a global present.'  But it has sparked fury among gender-critical activists, who argue the depiction of St Sebastian is not historically accurate.  Lucy Marsh, from the Family Education Trust, told the Daily Mail: 'Portraying St Sebastian, who is venerated in the Catholic and Orthodox Christian traditions, as a "transgender" man is not only historically inaccurate but incredibly offensive to Chistians. 'Rewriting history and pretending that an important male saint was secretly trans is ridiculous, because a Roman soldier could not have been female!  Singaporean artist Ming Wong retells the story of St Sebastian through his works at the National Gallery in London  Models are shot with arrows, which the saint miraculously survived before being clubbed to death on the order of the Roman emperor Diocletian 'It's also not acceptable for a publicly funded institution to promote gender ideology in an exhibition which is open to families.'  She added: 'Children may believe this depiction of St Sebastian is accurate, which could cement the false idea that transgenderism has been around for centuries. The National Gallery is world renowned and funded by taxpayers, who should not be paying for offensive exhibits which promote harmful ideologies as fact.'         The models can be seen wrestling and caressing each other, wearing minimal clothing.       Most clips end with models being shot with arrows - which the saint miraculously survived - next to stills of religious images.  Women's rights campaigner Kellie-Jay Keen described the exhibit as 'disgusting', adding: 'On so many levels this is wrong. However, it seems right now in the UK Christianity is failed and abused.  'The places like the National Gallery doing this deserve to be boycotted. It's about time we protect Christianity, because it's the foundation on which this country is built.'  St Sebastian, who is often depicted as an attractive youth, has become the subject of homoerotic reinterpretation over the years. Wong was named artist in residence at the National Gallery in 2025, amid the institution's scheme to showcase contemporary works Wong was named artist in residence at the National Gallery in 2025, amid the institution's scheme to showcase contemporary works.  The exhibit featuring his creations ends on Easter Monday, and is free to view.  It is located within the Sainsbury Wing, which was reopened following a refurbishment.  Wong's installations are positioned underneath paintings portraying Sebastian by Italian masters, such as Matteo di Giovanni and Carlo Crivelli, The Telegraph reported.  Galleries have previously been accused of using rehangs to reinterpret cultural treasures in terms of how they relate to racism or slavery. The Daily Mail has contacted the National Gallery and Ming Wong for comment.   No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.