Vagina Museum

Last updated

Vagina Museum
Vagina Museum Logo.png
Greater London UK location map 2.svg
Red pog.svg
Location within Greater London
EstablishedMarch 2017
Location London, UK
Type Museum
Visitors119,000 (2020)
Founder Florence Schechter
Website vaginamuseum.co.uk

The Vagina Museum is the world's first brick and mortar museum about the female reproductive system. [1] [2] [3] The project is based in the United Kingdom, and moved into its first fixed location in Camden Market, London, in October 2019. [4] [5] Its first exhibition opened on 16 November 2019. [6] [7] It moved to its second premises in Bethnal Green on 19 March 2022 and was open to the public until Wednesday, 1 February 2023. [8] It reopened in its next long-term home in two railway arches in Bethnal Green on 4 November 2023.

Contents

Description

The Vagina Museum was founded in response to a lack of gynaecological representation within the culture and heritage sector throughout the world. The museum usually hosts two temporary exhibitions per year which explore a multitude of topics surrounding gynaecological health, social history, activism and discourse, as well as an events programme of talks, workshops, comedy, theatre and performance art.[ citation needed ]

History

The project to create the Vagina Museum was launched when the founder, Florence Schechter, discovered there was a penis museum in Iceland, the Icelandic Phallological Museum, but there was no equivalent for the vagina or vulva. [9]

2017–2018: Pop up phase

The museum's first event, a comedy fundraiser, was held on 19 May 2017 headlined by Hayley Ellis. [10] [11] [12] It has run a number of events since, including participating in a residency with The Mothership Group called Superculture. [13] Events as part of this residency have included a talk on "Vulvanomics" by Emma L. E. Rees, author of The Vagina: A Literary and Cultural History, and a screening of the 2007 film Teeth (see vagina dentata ) followed by a Q&A with Amanda DiGioia, the author of Childbirth and Parenting in Horror Texts: The Marginalized and the Monstrous and various comedy nights. [14] [15] They have also held events at Limmud Festival 2017 [16] and the Royal Institution. [17]

The museum held its first exhibition in August 2017 in Edinburgh, Scotland. [18] Its second pop up exhibition was called "Is Your Vagina Normal?", [19] and it travelled around the UK to Ancient House, Thetford, [20] Brainchild Festival 2018, [21] SQIFF 2018, [21] and Museums Association Conference 2018. [22]

In the 2017 Women of the Future Awards, Schechter was commended in the arts and culture category for her work with the Vagina Museum. [23]

A permanent museum was proposed with exhibitions on gynaecological anatomy from science to art to culture, [24] [25] [26] which was to be trans-inclusive. [27]

Visitors at the inaugural exhibition "Muff Busters - Vagina Myths and How To Fight Them" Visitors at the Vagina Museum exhibition "Muff Busters - Vagina Myths and How To Fight Them".jpg
Visitors at the inaugural exhibition "Muff Busters - Vagina Myths and How To Fight Them"

2019: Camden Market premises

On 21 March 2019, the Vagina Museum launched a crowdfunder to raise money to open a premises in Camden Market. [28] [29] [30]

The project was supported by Camden Council, and leader of Camden Council Georgia Gould said:

Camden has a proud and radical history of challenging prejudice and orthodoxy, however, we acknowledge that the stigma associated with talking about gynaecological health has meant ignorance, confusion, shame, and poor medical care for too many. 65% of 16-to-25 year olds say they have a problem using the word vagina or vulva with almost half of 18-to-24 year old women say they are too embarrassed to talk about sexual health issues. We are therefore incredibly excited that the Vagina Museum is seeking to establish in Camden, and hope that it is funded to provide an inclusive and intersectional centre for learning, creativity, activism, and outreach that will add immeasurably to our collective understanding of our bodies. [31] [32]

The crowdfunder raised £48,945 [33] and in October 2019, the museum moved into Camden Stables Market [5] and began a programme of events. It opened its first exhibition, Muff Busters: vagina myths and how to fight them in November 2019. This exhibition was scheduled to end on 29 March 2020, but closed a few days earlier due to national lockdown restrictions in the UK. The next exhibition, Periods: A Brief History  [34] opened on 21 May 2021. [35]

In August 2021, the museum announced that its landlord had decided not to extend its lease beyond September. [36] The Camden Market site closed but the museum retained its online presence while it sought a new premises. [37] On 22 February 2022, it announced a relocation to 18 Victoria Park Square in Bethnal Green and a scheduled reopening date of 19 March 2022. [38]

Vulva diversity display in the permanent exhibition at the Victoria Park Square location Vulva diversity display in the permanent exhibition at the Vagina Museum at its Victoria Park Square location.jpg
Vulva diversity display in the permanent exhibition at the Victoria Park Square location

2022–2023: Victoria Park Square, Bethnal Green premises

On 19 March, the Vagina Museum reopened at 18 Victoria Park Square in Bethnal Green. [39] The museum opened with its exhibition Periods: A Brief History, along with a new permanent exhibition titled From A to V. [40] Prior to the reopening, the museum was advertised on billboards in the vicinity with cheeky puns about other local businesses in the area. [41]

The Vagina Museum closed its original Bethnal Green premises on 2 February 2023. [42]

2023–present: Poyser Street, Bethnal Green premises

Following a fundraising drive in 2023 raising over £85,000 in which over 2,500 people donated, the museum found new premises on Poyser Street, Bethnal Green. [43] It signed a lease with The Arch Co for six years. [44] The museum reopened in November 2023, initially on the ground floor only as lifts were not yet available. A range of temporary exhibitions are planned, with the first one about endometriosis. [45] Its first exhibition in its temporary gallery, titled "Endometriosis: Into The Unknown" was created in collaboration with Oxford EndoCare, part of the Nuffield Department of Women's and Reproductive Health, and the Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics based at the University of Oxford. [46]

In 2024, the Vagina Museum opened two further galleries, a "community gallery" and a permanent exhibition gallery. In October 2024, to mark Black History Month, the Museum announced that the galleries would be named after the Mothers of Gynecology, Anarcha, Lucy and Betsey. [47]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bethnal Green</span> Human settlement in England

Bethnal Green is an area in London, England and is located in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is in east London and part of the East End. The area emerged from the small settlement which developed around the Green, much of which survives today as Bethnal Green Gardens, beside Cambridge Heath Road. By the 16th century the term applied to a wider rural area, the Hamlet of Bethnal Green, which subsequently became a Parish, then a Metropolitan Borough before merging with neighbouring areas to become the north-western part of the new Tower Hamlets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Science Museum, London</span> Museum in Kensington, London

The Science Museum is a major museum on Exhibition Road in South Kensington, London. It was founded in 1857 and is one of the city's major tourist attractions, attracting 3.3 million visitors annually in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bethnal Green tube station</span> London Underground station

Bethnal Green is a London Underground station in Bethnal Green, London, England, served by the Central line. It lies between Liverpool Street and Mile End stations, is in Travelcard Zone 2, and is open 24 hours on a Friday and Saturday as part of the Night Tube service. The station was opened as part of the long planned Central line eastern extension on 4 December 1946, having previously been used as an air-raid shelter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Science and Media Museum</span> Part of the National Science Museum Group in the UK

The National Science and Media Museum, located in Bradford, West Yorkshire, is part of the national Science Museum Group in the UK. The museum has seven floors of galleries with permanent exhibitions focusing on photography, television, animation, videogaming, the Internet and the scientific principles behind light and colour. It also hosts temporary exhibitions and maintains a collection of 3.5 million pieces in its research facility.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Portrait Gallery, London</span> Art gallery in London, England

The National Portrait Gallery (NPG) is an art gallery in London that houses a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people. When it opened in 1856, it was arguably the first national public gallery in the world that was dedicated to portraits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Female reproductive system</span> Reproductive system of female humans

The human female reproductive system is made up of the internal and external sex organs that function in the reproduction of new offspring. The reproductive system is immature at birth and develops at puberty to be able to release matured ova from the ovaries, facilitate their fertilization, and create a protective environment for the developing fetus during pregnancy. The female reproductive tract is made of several connected internal sex organs—the vagina, uterus, and fallopian tubes—and is prone to infections. The vagina allows for sexual intercourse, and is connected to the uterus at the cervix. The uterus accommodates the embryo by developing the uterine lining.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">State Library Victoria</span> State library in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

State Library Victoria (SLV) is the state library of Victoria, Australia. Located in Melbourne, it was established in 1854 as the Melbourne Public Library, making it Australia's oldest public library and one of the first free libraries in the world. It is also Australia's busiest public library and, as of 2023, the third busiest library globally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young V&A</span> Museum in Bethnal Green, London

Young V&A, formerly the V&A Museum of Childhood, is a branch of the Victoria and Albert Museum, which is the United Kingdom's national museum of applied arts. It is in Bethnal Green in the East End of London, and specialises in objects by and for children. In 2024 it was awarded the Museum of the Year prize.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jewish Museum London</span> Former museum of British Jewish life

The Jewish Museum London was a museum of British Jewish life, history and identity. The museum was situated in Camden Town in the London Borough of Camden, north London. It was a place for people of all faiths to explore Jewish history, culture, and heritage. The museum had a dedicated education team, with a programme for schools, community groups and families. Charles, Prince of Wales was a patron of the museum.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tokyo National Museum</span> Art museum in Tokyo, Japan

The Tokyo National Museum or TNM is an art museum in Ueno Park in the Taitō ward of Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the four museums operated by the National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, is considered the oldest national museum and the largest art museum in Japan. The museum collects, preserves, and displays a comprehensive collection of artwork and cultural objects from Asia, with a focus on ancient and medieval Japanese art and Asian art along the Silk Road. There is also a large collection of Greco-Buddhist art. As of April 2023, the museum held approximately 120,000 Cultural Properties, including 89 National Treasures, 319 Horyuji Treasures, and 649 Important Cultural Properties. As of the same date, the Japanese government had designated 902 works of art and crafts as National Treasures and 10,820 works of art and crafts as Important Cultural Properties, so the museum holds about 10% of the works of art and crafts designated as National Treasures and 6% of those designated as Important Cultural Properties. The museum also holds 2,651 cultural properties deposited by individuals and organisations, of which 54 are National Treasures and 262 are Important Cultural Properties. Of these, 3,000 cultural properties are on display at one time, with each changing for between four and eight weeks. The museum also conducts research and organizes educational events related to its collection.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cambridge Heath</span> Human settlement in England

Cambridge Heath is an area in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, approximately 5.7 km (3.5 mi) north east of Charing Cross. It is named after a former heath in the East End of London. The northern boundary is formed by the Regent's Canal and the area includes Vyner Street, best known for its street art and galleries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fingering (sexual act)</span> Use of fingers to sexually stimulate

Fingering is sexual stimulation of the vulva or vagina by using the fingers. Vaginal fingering is legally and medically called digital penetration or digital penetration of the vagina. The term "digital" takes its significance from the English word 'digit', which refers to a finger, thumb, or toe. Fingering may also include the use of fingers to stimulate the anus.

Maureen Paley is the American owner of a contemporary art gallery in Bethnal Green, London, where she lives. It was founded in 1984, called Interim Art during the 1990s, and renamed Maureen Paley in 2004. She exhibited Young British Artists at an early stage. Artists represented include Turner Prize winners Lawrence Abu Hamdan, Gillian Wearing and Wolfgang Tillmans. One thing in common with many of the artists represented is their interest in addressing social issues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">York Art Gallery</span> Public art gallery in England

York Art Gallery is a public art gallery in York, England, with a collection of paintings from 14th-century to contemporary, prints, watercolours, drawings, and ceramics. It closed for major redevelopment in 2013, reopening in summer of 2015. The building is a Grade II listed building and is managed by York Museums Trust.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yorkshire Museum</span> Grade I listed building in York, England

The Yorkshire Museum is a museum in York, England. It was opened in 1830, and has five permanent collections, covering biology, geology, archaeology, numismatics and astronomy.

Science Gallery is an international group of public science centres, developed from a concept by a group connected to Trinity College Dublin in Ireland. The first Science Gallery was opened in 2008 and housed in the Naughton Institute at Trinity College.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vulva</span> External genitalia of the female mammal

In mammals, the vulva comprises mostly external, visible structures of the female genitalia leading away from the interior parts of the female reproductive tract, starting at the vaginal opening. For humans, it includes the mons pubis, labia majora, labia minora, clitoris, vestibule, urinary meatus, vaginal introitus, hymen, and openings of the vestibular glands. The folds of the outer and inner labia provide a double layer of protection for the vagina. Pelvic floor muscles support the structures of the vulva. Other muscles of the urogenital triangle also give support.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Megumi Igarashi</span> Japanese sculptor and manga artist

Megumi Igarashi, who uses the pseudonym Rokudenashiko, is a Japanese sculptor and manga artist who creates works that feature female genitalia and are often modeled after her own vulva. Rokudenashiko considers it her mission to reclaim female genitalia as part of women's bodies and demystify them in Japan's male dominated society, where she believes that they are "overly hidden" and marginalized as “taboo” and “obscene” in comparison to phallic imagery. As such, the artist has created a variety of different representations of manko, the Japanese slang for vagina or pussy, using representations of her own body as the raw material to emphasize as return to experience within art and manga. Rokudenashiko has been called an international symbol of “manko positivity.”

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vagina and vulva in art</span> Visual art representing female genitalia

The vagina and vulva have been depicted from prehistory onwards. Visual art forms representing the female genitals encompass two-dimensional and three-dimensional. As long ago as 35,000 years ago, people sculpted Venus figurines that exaggerated the abdomen, hips, breasts, thighs, or vulva.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Florence Schechter</span> Founder of Vagina Museum

Florence Schechter is the founder of the Vagina Museum. She is also a consultant, science communicator, comedian and public speaker. Her debut book, "V: An Empowering Celebration of the Vulva and Vagina", was published by Penguin Random House in March 2023.

References

  1. ↑ Laskow, Sarah (28 April 2017). "The World Needs a Vagina Museum". Atlas Obscura.
  2. ↑ Moss, Abigail (4 September 2017). "Why I'm Opening The World's First Museum Dedicated To Vaginas". Refinery29.
  3. ↑ "Vagina Wissen: Gibt es bald das weltweit ERSTE Vagina-Museum?" [Vagina knowledge: Will there soon be the world's FIRST vagina museum?]. Cosmopolitan (in German). 26 April 2017.
  4. ↑ "World's first vagina museum to open in Camden Market with myth-busting free exhibition". London Evening Standard. 18 September 2019.
  5. 1 2 "Vagina museum in London aims to 'banish shame'". BBC New UK. 18 September 2019.
  6. ↑ "The world's first vagina museum opens in London". Cosmopolitan. 17 November 2019.
  7. ↑ "World's first vagina museum now open in London". Metro London. 16 November 2019.
  8. ↑ "Vagina Museum in search for new home following second eviction". Museums Association. 31 January 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  9. ↑ "A woman is campaigning to open the world's first vagina museum". 12 April 2017.
  10. ↑ Spencer, Hayley (25 April 2017). "Someone is crowd-funding to create the world's first vagina museum". Stylist.
  11. ↑ Thompson, Rachel (10 April 2017). "There's a museum for penises, but not for vaginas, yet that could change". Mashable .
  12. ↑ "Comics raise cash for a vagina museum". Chortle. 10 April 2017.
  13. ↑ Thompson, Jessie (23 August 2017). "A vagina museum is coming to London". Evening Standard.
  14. ↑ "a vagina museum is opening". London On The Inside. 23 August 2017.
  15. ↑ McCabe, Katie (30 August 2017). "What's happening with The Vagina Museum?". Time Out.
  16. ↑ "Limmud Festival 2017 - Presenters: S". events.limmud.org.
  17. ↑ "Valentine's Day vaginas". The Royal Institution. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
  18. ↑ Gaulon, Julia (14 January 2018). "Avec Florence Schechter, au Royaume-Uni un musée du vagin en gestation" [With Florence Schechter, a Vagina Museum is in gestation in the UK]. TV5 Monde (in French).
  19. ↑ Suarez, Maria (February 2018). "Discover The Museum That Will Be Dedicated Solely To Vaginas". Cultura Colectiva.
  20. ↑ "The Vagina Museum Comes to Ancient House, Thetford". Visit Norfolk. Archived from the original on 27 September 2018.
  21. 1 2 "Is Your Vagina Normal?". Brainchild Festival 2021.
  22. ↑ Adams, Geraldine Kendall (8 August 2018). "Festival of Change line-up unveiled for Belfast 2018". Museums Association. Archived from the original on 16 February 2019.
  23. ↑ "Women of the Future Awards shortlist 2017". Women of the Future Awards.
  24. ↑ Sims, Alexandra (21 April 2017). "This woman wants to create the world's first Vagina Museum in London and she needs your help". Time Out.
  25. ↑ Gander, Kashmira (29 March 2017). "Vaginas deserve their own museum according to this woman". The Independent.
  26. ↑ Brown, Jessica (13 April 2017). "This woman is trying to open a vagina museum". Archived from the original on 13 June 2017.
  27. ↑ "Meet The Millennial Science YouTuber Who Is Setting Up The World's First Vagina Museum". 20 August 2023.
  28. ↑ "The Vagina Museum will open in London this year — with your help". Evening Standard. 21 March 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  29. ↑ "The world's first Vagina Museum opens this fall in the UK". Public Radio International. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  30. ↑ Turek, Anezka (20 March 2019). "Could you help the world's first Vagina Museum become a reality?". DIVA. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  31. ↑ "Crowdfunder launched to make world's first physical Vagina Museum a reality". Museums + Heritage Advisor. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  32. ↑ "the Vagina Museum needs your Help!". Funny Women. 21 March 2019. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  33. ↑ "The Vagina Museum needs your help to open". crowdfunder.com. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  34. ↑ "Future Exhibitions – Periods: A Brief History – 4 April - 25 October 2020". Vagina Museum. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020.
  35. ↑ Baska, Maggie (10 May 2021). "London's Vagina Museum is set to reopen this month with an exhibition dedicated to the history of menstruation". Pink News.
  36. ↑ Atkinson, Rebecca (24 August 2021). "'Outpouring of support' as Vagina Museum seeks new home". Museums Association News. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  37. ↑ Sinclair, Leah (27 September 2021). "Vagina Museum: people share how the vital Camden space changed their view on vaginas". Stylist.
  38. ↑ Mills, Eleanor (22 February 2022). "Vagina Museum finds new premises". Museums Association. Retrieved 3 March 2022.
  39. ↑ "The World's First Vagina Museum Is Right Here In London". Secret London. 22 February 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  40. ↑ Thompson, Jessie (18 March 2022). "A warm welcome: inside the Vagina Museum's new home in Bethnal Green". Evening Standard. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  41. ↑ "Vagina Museum "Neighbours" by TheOr London". www.campaignlive.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  42. ↑ "Finding a new home — Vagina Museum". 25 February 2023. Archived from the original on 25 February 2023. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
  43. ↑ Banfield-Nwachi, Mabel (9 October 2023). "London's Vagina Museum to reopen after surpassing fundraising goal". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  44. ↑ Barker, Sam (26 May 2023). "The Vagina Museum Has Found A New Home And Will Reopen Next Month". Secret London. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  45. ↑ Banfield-Nwachi, Mabel (9 October 2023). "London's Vagina Museum to reopen after surpassing fundraising goal". The Guardian.
  46. ↑ Hardaker, Alistair (9 October 2023). "Vagina Museum to reopen "bigger and better" Bethnal Green site next month". Museums + Heritage Advisor. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  47. ↑ Hardaker, Alistair (4 October 2024). "Vagina Museum renames galleries in honour of 'Mothers of Gynaecology' trio". Museums + Heritage Advisor. Retrieved 4 October 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.