Birth Rites Collection Summer School Online 2026

Birth Rites Collection Summer School Online 2026

Birth Rites Collection

Artform: Visual arts
Event date: Wed, 1st Jul 2026 to Wed, 29th Jul 2026
International

Thu, 21 May 2026 "> published -

Event Summary

The world's only contemporary art collection dedicated to childbirth invites you to a programme of lectures, workshops, seminars and one-to-one tutorials. Five-Week Course (Online):Dates: Wednesdays, 7:00 PM – 9:30 PM BST July 1,8,15, 22, 29 & Saturday 18, 2:00 PM – 5:00 PM BST.

Event Description

How do artists contest dominant narratives of birth and maternity? Whose bodies are heard, treated and believed in maternal healthcare? How do states instrumentalise reproduction through policy, imagery and ideology? How can the maternal become a site of resistance and reimagining? Led by artist and BRC Curator Dr Helen Knowles and artist Dr Leni Dothan, the course brings you into dialogue with the collection, this year's themes, and your own practice. You'll leave with bespoke visual, textual, auditory, photographic, filmic or performative work to carry into your future practice. This year, participants gain exclusive access to a curated selection of works from the collection not ordinarily available to the public, presented in a dedicated online space. Workshops explore the aesthetic, ethical, political and visual discourses of birth through text, film and performance. Lectures from leading artists and academics open up the following themes: Institutional bias in maternal healthcare - race, class, and the politics of care Pronatalism, border regimes, and reproductive justice The Collection's impact on feminist art and the visual history of birth Censorship, ethics and the law around artworks on birth How the Collection can shape practice and policy in midwifery, medicine and education. Our 2026 Keynote Speaker is the renowned video artist, CANDICE BREITZ. Other artists invited to speak are: Sarah Sudhoff, RAYVENN SHALEIGHA D'CLARK, Andrea Khora, Helen Knowles and Leni Dothan, with more announced soon.

Event Overview

  • Event Title: Birth Rites Collection Summer School Online 2026
  • Type: Workshop
  • Date: Wed, 1st Jul 2026 to Wed, 29th Jul 2026
  • Location: International

Useful Links

How to Book

For further information, please contact [email protected] ([email protected]), or visit https://www.birthritescollection.org.uk/summerschool2026 and fill in the form.

The deadline is Wednesday 01 July 2026 at 00:00.
All lectures, workshops, and discussions will take place online.
Cost: 600 GBP per person 450 GBP Concession Rate.

A 100GBP deposit is required to secure a place for the course. There is one bursary place available.