Votes for Women, 2022. Gold vinyl text. Lawson Flats. 4 Sherwood Court, Perth, WA.
Commissioned by Pig Melon, A volunteer-run studio, gallery and project space in Boorloo Perth, Votes for Women responds to the heritage building previously occupied by the Karrakatta Club. In the 1890s, activist groups like the Karrakatta Club, Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) and the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, strongly campaigned for women’s voting rights. Kitty Broadhurst was a founder of the Karrakatta Club, who fought for the vote for Western Australian women and went on to become a suffragette in the United Kingdom. “Deeds not Words” was the motto for their movement. Later, Edith Cowan, the first secretary of the club and later the President, chose the motto, Spectemur Agendo, “Let us be Judged by our Actions.” Both phrases show the radical and serious intentions of the women of the club who fought for equality through actions, not just words.
Photo: Guy Louden
Acknowledgements: Pig Melon, Luisa Hansal and Leigh Craft.