2024 Events
On Monday 9th December AWP member Liz Fraser Betts of Dot Dot Dash Coaching hosted a FREE #IamRemarkable online workshop – a Google initiative empowering women and underrepresented groups to speak openly about their accomplishments in the workplace and beyond, thereby breaking modesty norms and glass ceilings.
With Liz AWP members learned about research regarding self-promotion and unconscious bias, participate in group discussions and exercises, and develop the confidence and skills to promote yourself effectively.
On Saturday 23 November we met at ‘a space’ arts, in Southampton for an in person workshop to discuss and share ideas on how to improve working conditions for parents in the artworld.
Hosted by AWP founders Jo Harrison and Hettie Judah, the event focussed on the work they have been doing to give visibility to parents’ working conditions in the arts sector, followed by a conversation with the audience. This event is open to anyone working in the arts (artists and art workers) and it is a child-friendly event.
During the session we:
• Connected with other art working parents and carers in the South
• Discussed the structural issues facing parents and caregivers in
the arts
• Identified simple changes that would improve accessibility for
caregivers
On Tuesday 19 November at 8.30pm, we were joined online by Julia Trotta, co-founder of Artists & Mothers about why the organisation is needed, and how it all works.
Artists & Mothers is a nonprofit organization with a mission to support emerging and mid-career artists who identify as mothers. Awarded to New York City-based artists with children under the age of three, grantees will receive a grant for nine months of childcare to be used with the provider of their choice.
On Saturday 5 October we held an event with German group Fair Share! For Women Artists
We initially gathered in The Artist’s Garden – an open space above Temple Underground Station to see the exhibition MARY MARY. The exhibiting artists are: Olivia Bax, Rong Bao, Lucy Gregory, Virginia Overton, Candida Powell-Williams, Frances Richardson, Holly Stevenson, LR Vandy and Alice Wilson.
We then walked up to King’s College on The Strand (arranged by AWP member Kate McMillan) where Ines Doleschal and Karin Meyer from Fair Share! For Women Artists will gave a very informal introduction to their activities – including their inspiring ongoing campaign for more work by women to be included in Germany’s public collections.
On Wednesday 15 May, 2-4pm, we hosted a second event at The Women’s Art Library, Goldsmiths, London.
With the WAL Curator Althea Greenan, we had a meeting exploring the history of consciousness-raising groups and their legacies today. With a special introduction to these themes from Lily Evans-Hall whose PhD research looks at the mobilisation of collectives, co-operatives and collaboration in art informed by the Women’s Liberation Movement in the UK, followed by an informal discussion. We also had access to some of the incredible archives from the WAL.
We hosted free online talks with CVAN East Midlands on Tuesday 21 May 1-2pm and Yorkshire and East Humber Visual Art Network on Wednesday 22 May 6-7pm to present AWP to audiences from these regions. Aims for the sessions included establishing local cohorts and developing a dialogue with institutions in the region on improving working conditions for parents in the artworld.
On Sunday 24 March we were given a special breakfast preview of CUTE at Somerset House.
CUTE brings together contemporary artworks, including new artist commissions, and cultural phenomena such as music, fashion, toys, video games and social media, in this brand-new show examining the world’s embrace of cute culture and how it has become such an influential measure of our times.
On Thursday 21 March we were given an introduction by curator Linsey Young followed by entry to the landmark survey show Women in Revolt!: Art and Activism in the UK 1970-1990 at Tate Britain, London.
The first of its kind, this exhibition is a wide-ranging exploration of feminist art by over 100 women artists working in the UK. It shines a spotlight on how networks of women used radical ideas and rebellious methods to make an invaluable contribution to British culture. Their art helped fuel the women’s liberation movement during a period of significant social, economic and political change.
On Sunday 17th March we met at The Drawing Room where we were offered a curator’s tour of The Time of Our Lives featuring works by Monica Ross, Sutapa Biswas, Sonia Boyce, Magaret Harrison, Claudette Johnson, Lizzy Rose, Soheila Sokhanvari, Kate Davis and Jade de Monstserrat. The show focussed on works which raise consciousness around social and political issues , such as reproductive justice, sexism, racism and other forms of oppression.
We then congregated in the community room for an informal discussion with Alice and Lydia Ross – daughters of feminist artist and academic Monica Ross – who spoke with us about their mother’s practice.
Image: installation view of The Time of Our Lives
On Thursday 25th January, 2-4pm we met at The Women’s Art Library, for an event with Hannah Bowles and Esmeralda Valencia Lindström.
Hannah Bowles gave us a presentation on her research exploring how to integrate children and childcare into an educational setting, giving a background to her recent project Playgrounding, initiated last year at Goldsmiths Nursery.
Esmeralda Valencia Lindström discussed her project A Wet Archive that was on show at the Women’s Art Library. The research began in the WAL collection and expanded into a reflection on the hidden life of the archive and its built environment manifested through fungi.
The event will included an introduction to the WAL by Althea Greenan.
