Studio Orta

The banners were co-created with a group of women in HMP Downview to commemorate the centenary of the Suffragette movement, and in memory of 1,000 suffragettes that were imprisoned at Holloway women’s prison during their struggle to obtain the vote. HMP Holloway in London was one of the most notorious sites associated with the Suffrage movement, it closed in 2016 and the women were transferred to HMP Downview. From January to June 2018, Lucy Orta led creative workshops inside the prison and the process fed into the creation of ten commemorative banners. To pay homage to the suffragettes, a performative action took place at the site of the former Holloway prison as part of the mass-march Processions, uniting thousands women on June 10th, 2018.

The design for the HMP Downview banners draws from historical perspectives on the suffragette campaign, textile craft, and testimonials considering what it means to be a woman today, the power of the vote and our shared future. The hand-embellished panels were assembled collaboratively in Making for Change, an education training facility established by the Ministry of Justice and London College of Fashion (LCF) that equips prisoners with employability certifications.