Women artists’ work celebrated with pop-up reading room

The achievements, stories and histories of women artists will be shared using a pop-up reading room created by the Women’s Art Library (WAL) and South London Women Artists (SLWA).

The project Pillow Talk: conversations with women is to travel across the UK after making its debut at Brixton East on Monday 14 March to celebrate International Women’s Day.

Staged in a transparent geodesic dome, the space is furnished with art pillows by SLWA artists as seating and contains a selections of readings, cuttings and ephemera from the WAL collection which is based at Goldsmiths, University of London.

Curated by Althea Greenan, Curator of WAL, and SLWA’s Melissa Budasz, Moira Jarvis, Jasmine Pradissitto, Kim Thornton, visitors are invited to relax, read the material and to interact by sharing their own inspirations and histories which will become part of the archive.

Althea said: “Pillow Talk was an irresistible proposition from the South London Women Artists group who wanted to celebrate International Women’s Day with a year round project.

“I admire how it connects very diverse contemporary practices with cultural legacy through the power of shared experience.

“Taking your shoes off and entering this space promises to redefine the pleasures of art research.”

These conversations with women contribute to a collective multi-layered memory of women’s art history and highlight the achievements of women artists.

(Work by South London Women Artists)

The pillow artworks feature the work of 60 SLWA artists exploring diverse themes from the environment, science to politics, gender, memory and sex.

They are sites of learning, contemplation, discussion and dissent as well as a place to sit. The stable structure of the geodesic dome and its transparency invites the public inside providing the perfect space for open and balanced discussion.

Pillow Talk: conversations with women will tour to different locations in the UK throughout 2016.