SISTERHOOD SCHOOL LIVE BRIEF
Normal to Dissent Exhibition
One hundred years after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which extended voting rights to some women, issues of gender, race, access and inclusivity are back at the centre of public debate and turbulent global politics have reinvigorated engagement, fuelled participation and normalised dissent.
Taking the ideas of representation – and misrepresentation – as a starting point, this exhibition brings together creative practitioners who challenge established norms, offer alternative perspectives and seek to bring about change.
About the Exhibition
2018 marks the centenary of the Representation of the People Act 1918, which extended voting rights to women who met certain, limited criteria, but left 60% of the female population disenfranchised. One hundred years later, with turbulent global politic fuelling public debate, Normal to Dissent. sought to address issues of visibility across gender, race and access by examining their systems of language and representation.
Curated by Rebecca Wright, Programme Director and Kate Keara Pelen, External Liaison Coordinator from Graphic Communication Design, Normal to Dissent. was split across an exhibition in the Window Galleries and a series of conversations and workshops in the Lethaby Gallery. Alongside work from Graphics students, staff and alumni, the project brought together three additional programmes: Art; Culture and Enterprise and Drama and Performance.
School 21 Sisters
The students are using design to address the female specific issues that affect their everyday lives. Their aim is to deliver a design outcome that creates a positive impact for themselves and the young girls around them.
Design Brief: Help girls feel more comfortable with their natural beauty by creating more realistic and diverse representations of girls in the media.
Beauty Hacks is a manifesto that skews the perception of words girls hear and tell themselves. School 21 Sisters are reframing what it means to be beautiful.
This programme is delivered through Sisterhood School (in partnership with Makerversity), a social enterprise that aims to build girls self-confidence through creative programmes.
