The Tasmanian Art Quilt Prize 2015 – History, Her Story is a collaborative program between the Tasmanian Quilting Guild & the Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery. The exhibition opened at Narryna Heritage Museum in Hobart last night and continues until 22 November 2015. It features 17 contemporary art quilts exploring the title theme:
At first glance the theme may seem to focus on women in history but it is an ambiguous statement that may reflect stories in the modern world from a male or female perspective. The theme may be interpreted in many different ways.
The judging panel comprised of Gloria Loughman (Textile Artist, Victoria), Kate Berry (Textile Artist Tasmania) and Scott Carlin (Curator Narryna House , Tasmanian Museum & Art Gallery) determined the following prize winners:
- Winner: Katherine Jones, Tasmania, Acanthocephalus crania 310715 based in part on her mother’s life story;
- Runner Up: Sandra Champion, Tasmania, Kate Weindorfer the Invisible Woman
- Highly Commended – Helen Godden, ACT, Nancy Bird Walton Aviatrix, and Laraine Pickett, NSW, The Female Factory.
Apparently an online gallery will not be published until after the exhibition has concluded. In the meantime, here is my artwork- Secret Women’s Business: Every Woman Bleeds:
Artist Statement: In her lifetime, every woman has over 450 menstrual cycles and will bleed for between 2,250 to 3,000 days. Yet we are strangely mute on this universal experience.
Similarly, there little mention of menstruation throughout history. Ancient Egyptians used softened papyrus as tampons while Byzantine women used wool. Before the 20th century, most western women pinned rags inside their clothes or simply bled into their clothes.
World War I revolutionised sanitary towels as French nurses realised the absorbent qualities of disposable cellulose bandages. Tampons became commercially available in the 1930s. The adhesive maxi pad only arrived in 1969 – the same year that man first landed on the moon!
In the 21st century, millions of women across the developing world face major difficulties managing their period due to poor sanitation and lack of access to affordable sanitary supplies. This problem is severe enough that girls miss school every month and working women also lose productive time. Addressing this issue is key to social change. The humble sanitary pad can be the linchpin of economic growth thereby changing history.
Materials & techniques: Commercial cottons, poly/wool batting. Freeform piecing. Machine quilted. Bleach discharge. Extreme laundering.
In creating this work, I was inspired by Days for Girls, an international non-profit organisation that is committed to creating a more free, dignified, and educated world through access to lasting feminine hygiene solutions and community-based health leadership programs.
Read how this work was created, the role of serendipity and my adventures in extreme laundering in Secret Women’s Business: The Backstory.