Photo Oxford 2021: Women & Photography

About Photo Oxford

Founded by local photojournalist Robin Laurance, Photo Oxford was established to bring internationally acclaimed photography and photographic debate to the city of Oxford.

Photo Oxford hosts exhibitions, events and professional development opportunities in collaboration with local, national and international partners to bring photographic excellence to the region, develop new audiences, nurture talent, and promote investment within the sector.

Highlights of the festival

Line and Texture: The photography of Nancy Sheung (1914-1979) – known for her emphasises on strong lines and patterns – presented in partnership with the Confucius Institute at Oxford Brookes University and St Hugh’s College.

Zoom Portraits of COVID19 Vaccine Trial Participants by photographer Fran Monks at the History of Science Museum and also on the Boswells building hoardings in Broad Street.

A Different Mirror at the Barn Gallery in St John’s College, which presents a dialogue between two generations of socially engaged photographers from the pioneering work of Jo Spence and Alexis Hunter, grounded in 1970s feminism, to the recent projects of three young artists: Heather Agyepong, Eliza Hatch and Bindi Vora. 

Maud Sulter: Remaking the Past, also at the Barn Gallery in St John’s College, brings together two seminal series by Scottish-Ghanaian artist Maud Sulter (1960–2008), whose work sought to question the representation of Black women in art and culture.

Photographer Chloe Dewe Mathews’ outdoor exhibition at Christ Church Meadows examines the ever-changing nature of our relationship to water, from ancient pagan festivities to the rituals of modern life.

‘Catherine, Kiambé, Surya’ is a body of work by the emerging French artist Elisa Moris Vai that introduces the artist’s photographic response to three female characters in La Quarantaine (1995) and Révolutions (2003). Curated by Pelumi Odubanjo, this solo show is on at Maison Française d’Oxford.

‘Women on Women – Relationships, Identity and Power – Explored Through Photography’ is a bold collection of work by contemporary visual artists that will be located on digital bus stops around Oxford.

On show at Exeter College’s Cohen Quad, ‘Images of Liberation’ is a collection of striking images from photographer-on-the-ground Sally Fraser capture the fiery beginnings of second-wave feminism in Britain. 

Commissioned by the Bishop of Southwark to mark the 25th anniversary of the ordination of women, Dearly Beloved (first exhibited as Here Am I in London) portrays the ministry of 10 women priests in the Church of England through a combination of images and text. See Dearly Beloved at University Church of St Mary the Virgin.

Set along the coastlines of Dorset and Jersey, Not Many People Here Yet is a playfully nostalgic unveiling of friendship and shared experiences across time. This exhibition is at Wolfson College.

At Avenue 4 in the Oxford Covered Market, three students currently studying for the BA (HONS) Photography Degree at Oxford Brookes University have come together to present three separate bodies of work documenting women dealing with parenting, representation, and adolescence.

At Oxford Playhouse, Oxford-based photographer Keiko Ikeuchi presents Water Lily, a photographic series featuring Kazuo Ohno (1906-2010), a celebrated pioneer of Butoh – an avant-garde form of dance theatre.

The photography of Carla van de Puttelaar allows the eye to touch the skin on many levels. Her exhibition will be on show in The Medival Barn – a pop-up gallery behind The Old Bank Hotel.

At the Weston Library, Mari Mahr and Joanna Vestey’s work will be shown alongside a curated collection of books and a screen display that presents the work of 6 women photographers who have each made work that explores this theme.

An exhibition of nine stunning silkscreen prints by the Gambian-British artist, Khadija Saye (1992-2017), exploring her fascination with the ‘migration’ of traditional Gambian spiritual practices’ will be on at the Top Gallery, Pitt Rivers Museum.

Oxford-based photographer, Philippa James (100 Women Of Oxford), has worked with thirteen local female photographers. And one final work by each artist has been curated into an exhibition – ArtsLab: Fourteen – at The North Wall Arts Centre.

Fabric of Photography: A Material Matter at Arts at the Old Fire Station focuses on the work of contemporary photographic artists who are increasingly inspired by the pioneering historical processes and physicality of photography.

Taking place across multiple venues, Women and Early Colour Photography: An Autochrome Trail celebrates women’s contribution to early colour photography through the work of three innovative photographers: Sarah Angelina Acland, Helen Messinger Murdoch and Etheldreda Janet Laing.

Tokyo: Art & Photography at the Ashmolean is a celebration of one of the world’s most creative, dynamic and thrilling cities. Highlights include contemporary photographs by Moriyama Daido and Ninagawa Mika, historic folding screens and iconic woodblock prints, video works, and pop art. Read more about the Tokyo: Art & Photography Exhibition.

The HATCHED2021 exhibition at OVADA brings together the practices of local and international lens-based artists, voicing the multiple aspects of gender inequalities: reproductive rights, gender-based violence, and trafficking.

Illuminate: exploring the way the camera sees at Oxford Covered Market was conceived to bring together young people from across different socio-economic groups within the city, to explore and experience photography in order to consider how they view themselves, how others see them and how they see women in their families and friendships.