This project is an evolving piece of work exploring menopause, ageing and women’s lived experience through collective making and shared storytelling.

I am currently developing a series of creative workshops that will bring women together to work with textiles, photography and conversation. The focus is not on producing perfect outcomes, but on creating space to reflect, to connect, and to express experiences that are often hidden or minimised.

 

At the centre of the project is the idea of a giant patchwork cardigan. The images shared here are early visual experiments (AI renderings), imagining how a large-scale textile sculpture might function as both a gathering space and a metaphor for care, warmth and contradiction: softness alongside discomfort, visibility alongside invisibility. Participants will contribute stitched, printed and photographic material, building the work collectively over time.

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Alongside this, Hot Flash Mob is being developed as a photography-based strand, playfully exploring confidence, visibility and self-definition during menopause. These images will inform and become part of the wider textile work.

 

This page documents the thinking, testing and planning stages of the project as it continues to grow. The final form will be shaped through collaboration, conversation and care.

 

Project Development & Support

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Menopause Makes is currently being supported in its early development through in-kind guidance, space and opportunities from a range of regional partners.

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Following participation in the Powerhouse Generator programme, Imagineer Productions have offered a bespoke package of support in kind including access to space at the Daimler Powerhouse for future workshops, events or exhibition, meeting space, mentoring, and support with networking and promotion.

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As an alumna of Coventry University, I have also been offered use of the Hyper Studio in the Delia Derbyshire Building for workshops and exhibition.

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Additional workshop and development support is being provided through community groups Arts in Action CIC and Escape Arts.

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Opportunities to engage participants and share work are also developing through the Menopause Support Group at The Grange Medical Centre in Nuneaton, In Stitches at The Station Gallery and Saints Community Café, Nuneaton.

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Nuneaton BID are supporting promotion of the project by featuring the existing cardigan work within their town centre exhibition space, helping to raise visibility and reach new audiences.

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The project is further supported by a network of artists and practitioners. Janet Vaughan has provided mentoring and guidance. Jo Gane will lead photography workshops, and Rakha Madahar will facilitate print-based sessions.

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This growing network of support is helping to strengthen the project’s development, expand its reach, and build a foundation for future delivery.