I missed he Women In Revolt! exhibition when it was on in London last year, so I was delighted when my Dad sent me a link to the Whitworth Gallery in Manchester and I realised it would be displayed there, the weekend I was staying at Manchester airport.
I marched straight through the Turner exhibition - in which I have no interest (finding his paintings dull and stuffy) - and was greeted by a wall of monochrome badge designs.
This badge was my favourite...
There was quite a lot of propaganda material; posters and leaflets on display which I found interesting given my research into the topic - however I felt that often the artistic quality was somewhat lacking.
There was a great display of posters on the topic of childcare, which I found incredibly depressing - given the current state of the nursery care system in the UK which prohibits many women from going back to work or forces parents to choose to have fewer children than they want.... Like why is this still a problem?
I loved these three photos by Penny Slinger because they chime with my own feelings about the ceremonial farce of weddings. Marriage is a legal contract with the state, and a tradition rooted in patriarchal traditions and religious structures which I don't believe in - it isn't romantic in and of itself and is not a reflection on the strength of a romantic partnership. I find the expense, extravagance and ceremonial traditions of weddings utterly nauseating - I haven't been to many weddings but the passive aggressive speeches make my skin crawl. I think there are legitimate legal reasons to get married, but I can't stand the wedding traditions.
I was really intrigued by this sculptural work by Judy Clark made from wood, perspex, contraceptive pills and menstrual blood - probably because it touched on some traumatic personal experiences. At first I was irritated by the exacting nature of the cycle depicted, four sides of 7 - representing a 28 day cycle, which is what we were all taught was a regular menstrual cycle but in reality anything between 21 and 35 days is considered "normal". On the legend it quoted the artist, 'one of the reasons it is put out in an ordered way is that it is so dangerous that if it was out of control, it would be totally unacceptable' - as someone who has always had irregular periods (or even stopping for years at a time), I was really amused by the idea that my fertility was considered "dangerous" and "out of control". The pill on the other hand is triggering to me just because of the side effects I experience and my ex-boyfriend being unforgiveably cruel to me as a result - it makes me angry that the responsibility is always put on women to manage contraception.
It turns out Lady Gaga wasn't the first to wear a meat dress.... In this performance Linder was protesting the showing of pornographic films at the club.
I thought this piece by Liz Rideal was especially brave and provocative in a culture where female pleasure was so taboo.
I was glad to see part of the exhibition dedicated to the Greenham Common protests which I have read about extensively.
However, I was very disappointed that they only had one banner from Greenham on display, and it wasn't even an original nor a sewn tapestry. I really feel they missed an opportunity to show some pieces of real power and beauty.
However, I did later find a great banner on the mezanine floor.
They also made a replica of the perimeter fence which the women adorned with household objects and childrens pictures. I thought it was great that they paid homage to this part of the Women for Peace protest.
As someone who played an active role in the childcare of my younger siblings, and who has worked in childcare - I found this artwork to be deeply discomforting. It is so devoid of joy and contradictory to my own idealised notions of care-taking - it makes me question whether I would feel this oppression if I were to have children of my own.
For me this was the most powerful artwork in the exhibition. At first I thought it was a work about a miscarriage, until I read the description - the artist actually suffers from muscular dystrophy and was sterilised believing that she would not live long enough to care for a child - only to find out in her late 20s she might live a full life. The injustice and deep sadness of these works and the fact that she had named the child she could never have, really touched me.
Other Works I loved
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