Join us for a private view and drinks reception on Friday 5 December from 18:00-20:00 with speeches at 18:15. RSVP.
The Art House presents Emily Ryalls: Divine Archives, an exhibition using performance, sculpture and photography to reimagine women’s embodied knowledge as an archive, asking how we can care for, share, and preserve it.
This exhibition also features works made in collaboration with Artist Kelly Rankin, Ceramicist Hannah Way and Filmmaker Micheal Godsall.
Emily Shares
“Divine Archives brings together the exchanges of 46 women. Through creative practice these women joined me as we engaged in, what I refer to as, the act of archiving. I asked women to consider their bodies as beautiful and radical archives, holding years of embodied knowledge which should be valued and looked to as guides for self reflection and social organising.
Hungry for the embrace that women’s ‘consciousness raising groups’ offered, we gathered with process as a catalyst for conversation, community, and female friendship.
Our bodies were cast in clay whilst we brought bodily memories to the surface, we bathed under the sun in the Yorkshire landscape as our forms slowly imprinted on sheets beneath us, and we bravely stepped into each other’s worlds – storytelling and performing with vulnerability for the camera. Through shared laughter, tears, and learning, we claimed these spaces as our own, documenting with a loving and knowing lens.
With endless gratitude for the rich contributions of all those who participated, this powerful body of work positions women as the guardians of present, living and breathing knowledge.”
ACCESS
This exhibition is featured in the Main Gallery.
-The Main Gallery is well-lit.
-The gallery is Guide and Support dog-friendly (We ask that dogs be kept on leads).
-The room has level access, and allows space for wheelchair/mobility aid/pushchair users or people with Guide dogs to pass comfortably.
-The exhibition includes Audio, Braille, Easier Read and Dyslexia-friendly interpretations.
-Sensory ear defenders are available for use during your visit, and can be picked up at the front desk.
We also offer exhibition private views by appointment.
See our Access Page for more information