It was exciting to see the response to the Women In Revolt! exhibition which opened in November 2023. It included panels from Who’s the Holding the Baby by the Hackney Flashers.
The show, curated by Linsey Young, received positive and thoughtful responses. By highlighting the importance of the women’s movement it created a stir. We’ve brought together a round-up of reactions here.
Adrian Searle wrote in The Guardian “this survey of feminist agit art is full of wit and collective anger. It couldn’t be more timely.” and noted that the show revealed social inequality that is still prevalent today.
Time Out‘s Eddy Frankel thought it dense and bitty. But, Frankel also found it to be “Vicious, searing, necessary stuff”, writing:
“…don’t come here looking for nice, easy art. This is not a pristine, consumable, blockbuster show of market-ready paintings or Insta-tastic installation. It’s room after room of zines, protest posters, graffiti, photocopies, scrawled invective and social research. This is art made on the margins, in an attempt to kick back at an unjust society. It’s not meant to look good on a millionaire’s wall, it’s meant to change the world. And it did.”
This can only be a positive for work like Who’s Holding the Baby. The Hackney Flashers created it as agitprop, not art. And not as something to decorate millionaires’ walls!
Sarah Kent from The Arts Desk found the exhibition to be “a super important if overwhelming show“.
Laura Cumming called it “a monumental social history” in The Observer. Skye Sherman celebrated the way women’s protest art came about. Women were “working at kitchen tables with whatever was available around the house”. She also notes the collective nature of work by The Hackney Flashers and the See Red Women’s Workshop.
Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett reflected on the show in her column from the “Republic of Parenting”. Visiting it made her realise how much had changed in parenting since the 1970s.
Women are now much less likely to be holding the baby on their own. She acknowledged that advances are thanks to the work of “our feminist forebears”. But Coslett noted, “working mothers are still performing the bulk of domestic labour”.
In other coverage of the show, Mojo Magazine celebrated its punk spirit. The Evening Standard called it “rich and absorbing”.
In The House, Baroness Hayter told members of The House of Lords to “go and visit your pasts. MPs: go and witness our early struggles. Tate Britain’s display of some brilliant feminist agitprop is just a stone’s throw from Parliament.” The Times begrudgingly conceded that “these messy feminists are very moreish”.
Of course, not everyone wants to celebrate feminism or recognise that protest creates change. The Telegraph complained of “a motley crew of more than a hundred second-wave-feminist women artists and collectives, crackling with convictions, yet, often, of middling talent.”
The Financial Times branded the show “political folly on display” in a piece by Jackie Wullshläger. Wullshläger lamented the lack of “stellar stars”. She found the exhibition about women’s activism dull.
One of our members replied and The Financial Times published her response.
Hackney Flasher, Michael Ann Mullen wrote, “Art institutions are bound by past definitions. In this show, Linsey Young and her team are challenging some of them in an attempt to update the Tate’s remit for the 21st Century. To label all the work in this exhibition ‘political folly’, as the article headline does, is inexplicable and inexcusable”.
Visitors to the exhibition were also enthusiastic about the display of women’s activism. They have shared their impressions in countless positive posts on social media. Here are some snippets from just a small snapshot of them.
“It was too good for just one visit”, Buttress & Snatch.
“Women who Revolt @tate Britain is one of the best historical and politically conscious exhibitions I’ve seen EVER. The power of women – in all their intersections – to call for and make happen peace, equality, equity and justice.” Nadya Powell
“The Women in Revolt exhibition at Tate Britain was superb! Am left feeling positively rebellious! Powerful and exciting…go if you get the chance!” Trina Hart
“A beautiful evening at Tate Britain to enjoy the new exhibit “Women in Revolt!…” with a wide-range exploration of feminist art by over 100 women artists working in the UK. This important exhibition includes over 20 archival pieces on loan from Black Cultural Archives…” Black Cultural Archives
“Completely inspired by the exhibition and artists of Women In Revolt Art And Activism In The UK 1970-1990, at Tate Britain.” Helen Sargeant.
Women In Revolt! Art and Activism in the UK 1970-1990 is at Tate Britain till 7 April 2024.
More exhibition news
Found Cities, Lost Objects, an Arts Council exhibition includes a version of all 29 Who’s Holding the Baby panels. It opens on 26th January at Leeds Art Gallery.
Hackney Flashers 