The untold stories of remarkable women around the world come alive in our Women, Power and Politics exhibition. You'll connect with women who struggle and triumph today or who ruled empires in the past. You'll meet warriors, revolutionaries and peacemakers. You'll be inspired by the stories of tough Iron Ladies, grieving mothers, audacious students and hard-working, effective senators.
From March 8 to December 31, 2008, I.M.O.W. will explore a provocative new topic each month through interviews, stories, art, film and photography. Start exploring each monthly focus below and come back often for new and inspiring stories and comments from women and men around the world as well as for ongoing opportunities to make a difference.
August: How Do Women Bring about Democracy?
When democracy is in danger, or nowhere to be seen, women stand up and speak out. Often at great risk to their lives, women refuse to accept that corrupt and unjust societies are acceptable. Join us this month as we explore women's roles in creating and protecting the democratic process.
Dictating Democracy
Can art act as a catalyst for social change? In the United States, where freedom of expression is protected by the first amendment of the Constitution, New York-based artist Sheryl Oring encourages U.S. citizens to take advantage of that freedom with her ongoing performance piece I Wish to Say.
July: What does religion have to do with it?
Throughout history, religion has had a lot to do with women's personal and political lives. Religious women make change happen, whether seeking peace or inciting war. Belief can inspire social justice, or block a woman's access to freedom or equality. Join us this month as we explore how faith makes or breaks political women around the world.
A Curtain Between Worlds
To many in the Western world, the wearing of the hijab, or veil, by Muslim women is a mysterious and controversial tradition. Artist Georgina Choueiri--born into the Lebanese Civil War and raised in Beirut, the United States and Spain--was also intrigued by the custom.
In her series of luminous paintings and murals, titled The Veil, Choueiri explores the view from inside out and outside in.
June: How Do Women Save the Earth?
Women have always led the way in protecting the environment. From something as big as fighting for their country's people and land, to providing for their families, down to protecting the health of a single individual, women have a unique role in saving the earth. Join us as we explore women's connection to the world's resources, its wellbeing and its future.
Podcast Sibongile Musuku van Damme: Who Knows the Earth Best?
Picturing Breast Cancer
A woman dying of cancer is wrapped in another woman's arms. Behind them, incinerators belch out dark clouds of smoke. Nearby, a one-breasted woman carries a placard reading: "The power to heal is in our hands!" In a corner, a dewy-eyed girl holds another with a simple plea: "Mamma died of cancer -- don't poison me too!"
May: Is Biology Destiny?
What does being female have to do with politics? Do women gain power or lose power by what their bodies can and cannot do? How is the female body respected, used, abused and manipulated in the political arena? Join us as we explore how, for better or worse, women are tied to their bodies in the political arena.
The Curse of Nakedness
A woman's body is both revered and feared in cultural traditions from East to West. It is immortalized as "pin-up girl" and simultaneously mystified as mother. A community of women in Nigeria, however, proved that a woman's body is enough to bring one of the largest oil companies to the bargaining table. When their words were not being heard, they made themselves be seen...by threatening to strip naked in public.
April: What does power look like?
Many people are not aware that women have held power since the beginning of time. Women have built empires and conquered nations, leading both behind the scenes and at center-stage. But what is power? And what does it look like in lives of ordinary and extraordinary women? Do women lead differently than men? Do women have to be iron-fisted to exercise power and lead effectively? What role does image play in politics and what does a woman have to do to appear powerful?
Fashion is Political
Robin Givhan, the Pulitzer prize-winning fashion editor for the Washington Post, writes about the fashion industry and the ways in which it influences the lives of ordinary people who seldom find themselves walking along a red carpet. She refuses to accept the notion that fashion is somehow for "other" people. Instead, her goal is to show her readers that we all participate in "fashion" every time we dress ourselves. Fashion, in her opinion, is the most personal form of communication we have. It expresses who we are, and, more important, it expresses how we wish to be perceived.
March: What Difference Do Women Make?
Across the globe and throughout history, women have made a difference in their communities and the world. So why do we keep hearing about Hillary Clinton's cleavage, Condolleeza Rice's stilettos and Cristina Kirchner's fashion sense instead of their political prowess?
Podcast Talking Politics with Political “Mama” Irene Natividad
For Art and Oil
A woman holds up a framed photograph with reverence. Two other women dance with their photograph, held high as if in celebration. But the vision we see inside the frames is one of polluted landscapes spouting fire and smoke. Look closer, and you see that the photos are sandwiched between two layers of glass. Pooled at the bottom of each frame is the key to the story: a dark puddle of oil.
