I am delighted to be exhibiting my painting 'Suffragette Honouring' (acrylic on canvas, 2021). It is such a joy to be joining with South Korean women artists for this exhibition and thanks to 노정숙 (Jungsuk Noh), Director of the MIRO creative platform, Lecturer Chonam National University, Chairwoman of the International Visual Culture & Arts Association, for curating the exhibition.

In keeping with theme of Women’s Rights this painting honours the suffragette’s in Britain, who from 1890-1919 protested for the right for women to be able to vote in Britain. It is thanks to them that women in Britain can now vote for who they wish to be in government and underpins a change towards women’s equality with men. The Suffragette’s always dressed well and in the colours of white for purity, purple for loyalty and dignity and green for hope. Purple irises also denote faith, wisdom and courage. White camelias were presented by the Suffragette’s to those in parliament who voted for women to gain the right to vote. The flowers in this painting therefore symbolise the Suffragette movement. see the exhibition video here

123 years ago the 'Women's Rights Declaration' was published on September 1st 1898 in the Republic of Korea which led the establishment of the fist South Korean Women's organisation Changyanghoe and the setting up of a Girls school.  In 2019 the Korean National Assembly decided to celebrate this each year on September 1st, and also erected a memorial stone to the movement at the site of the former Girls' school. 2020 was to be the first art exhibition to celebrate this and the Gwangju Democritization movement, but because of Covid 19 it was postponed until now.

This exhibition records how women's rights have been represented in art with over 9 countries joining with the South Korean women artists in solidarity, as part of the International Women's Art Festival in Gwangju.

I look forward to next month speaking at the accompanying conference 'Contemporanaeity of both Women's Art and Rights'