“If you wear my shoes, then you'll know” (2018) - STORE - University of Staffordshire Online Repository

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FANTHOME, Lynne and Safety4Sisters Migrant Women's Group, (NRPF) (2018) “If you wear my shoes, then you'll know” (2018). [Artefact]

[thumbnail of Lynne Fanthome and Safety4Sisters NRPF migrant women’s group: “If you wear my shoes, then you'll know” (2018) – installation.]

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Image (Lynne Fanthome and Safety4Sisters NRPF migrant women’s group: “If you wear my shoes, then you'll know” (2018) – installation.)
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[thumbnail of People's History Museum label for " If you wear my shoes then you'll know"]

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[thumbnail of Transcript of S4S installation audio.docx]

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[thumbnail of Audio narrative of the Safety4Sisters NRPF groups stories - "If you were in my shoes you'll know"]

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[thumbnail of Lynne Fanthome (2018) Safety4Sisters migrant women with no recourse to public funds (NRPF) with their installation, “If you wear my shoes, then you know” (2018) PHM, Manchester. (This image maintains the anonymity of some of the group by request).]

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Image (Lynne Fanthome (2018) Safety4Sisters migrant women with no recourse to public funds (NRPF) with their installation, “If you wear my shoes, then you know” (2018) PHM, Manchester. (This image maintains the anonymity of some of the group by request).)
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[thumbnail of Safety4Sisters workers and NRPF group discussing their installation.]

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Official URL: https://phm.org.uk/exhibitions/represent-voices-10...

Abstract or description

An installation made for the exhibition, “Represent! Voices 100 Years On” at the People’s History Museum, by the Safety4Sisters with No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) migrant women’s group, facilitated by Lynne Fanthome. The researcher met the group to inform and discuss exhibition themes of political representation. From these workshops came the ideas that led to, “If you wear my shoes, then you’ll know” (2018): formed of their own and their children’s footwear placed on a plinth, a sound recording recounts their experiences of gendered violence, journeys of escape and struggles with immigration authorities, in the context of the hostile environment for migrants. The title and the objects call for the viewer to listen and imagine what these experiences would be like. The transcript is voiced by actress Monica Sagar to maintain anonymity, by request from some members of the group.

Item Type:	Artefact
Additional Information:	Brief Description Responding to a call from the People’s History Museum (PHM) in Manchester in 2017, for community groups to form the editorial panel of “Represent! 100 Years On”, Fanthome partnered with PHM and Safety4Sisters with No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) women’s group, with the objective that participants author contributions to the exhibition. Research Statement The research aimed to discover what an inclusive and representative community arts and heritage practice requires as a commitment from community groups, museum, and researcher. The methodology combines activist, feminist principles and critical attention to participatory, co-production principles: questioning whether participation was possible, or would benefit the group in their situation of emergency and crisis, additionally; what might the partners learn from this research activity? Critical attention was given to the impact and effects of power and inequality on the NRPF group, where the priorities of the museum and researcher claimed authority, or precedence. Knowledge production was important throughout this process: PHM suggested changes to exhibition content, which Safety4Sisters and researcher successfully argued against; the white plinth, however, was retained by the museum despite objection, raising questions regarding co-curation that are ongoing (SITZIA 2018). The research comes out of the process of engagement in which the People’s History Museum both heard and misheard the women’s narratives and the suggestions of the researcher in installing work. Significantly, the transcription and audio recording for their installation begins, “If you wear my shoes then you’ll know.” This differs, however, from the installation label, which reads “If you were in my shoes then you’ll know it”. The “shoe” narratives are stories of individual women, voiced by an actress, which the migrant women’s group would have preferred to have voiced themselves. On several visits to the exhibition the recording was either turned off, or barely audible, which meant that the collection of shoes was not contextualized by the audio recording. The process of voice and listening have a significance, questioning the extent to which the museum can hear and facilitate the voice of the communities with whom they are engaged. The NRPF women’s group could not have taken part without material support from the Safety4Sisters’ organisation, who agreed the partnership with the museum. Directors at PHM have discussed additional funding to secure future participation, inviting the group to contribute to their next exhibition, Migrant Identities for 2020. Role of Researcher The researcher held several roles: PHM editorial panel member for the larger exhibition project; contributing to the presentation of artefacts; facilitating women with NRPF in deciding the form of their contribution; working with Safety4Sisters and PHM to ensure the confidentiality and security of the group. Consideration of these roles formed a significant aspect of this research.
Faculty:	School of Creative Arts and Engineering > Art and Design
Event Location:	People's History Museum Manchester
Depositing User:	Lynne FANTHOME
Date Deposited:	14 Jan 2019 09:17
Last Modified:	24 Feb 2023 13:53
Related URLs:	Organisation
URI:	https://eprints.staffs.ac.uk/id/eprint/5079

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