Hidden Women of Rossendale – Sharon Brown

Sharon Brown explores archive materials and underrepresentation of women in historical photographs from Rossendale, creating work around 'lost' or 'hidden' women found in the background of century-old images. About As an artist, I am fascinated by archive materials and the personal histories they contain, often giving us a glimpse of a way of life that no longer exists as well as the people who lived it. I have had the privilege of spending time immersed in the archive at The Whitaker, looking at and digitally responding to photographs and documents that capture the history of Rossendale. As I spent time reviewing this imagery I became interested in the underrepresentation of women in the archive material I worked with. Therefore, I felt particularly connected to photographs I came across of large rooms of women working in a shoe factory. Digitising archive materials allows you to easily scale things up, zooming in on every detail of that space, the working environment and the female workforce. I found women in the background of these photographs that probably would not be noticed when viewing the photographs at their normal size and perhaps, have not been fully seen or recognised in 100 years. This led to creating work around these 'lost' or 'hidden' women by looking for them in other photographs and documents, like a postcard of the staff of Rawtenstall Cinema or an image of workers celebrating VE Day. I found amazing women from different circumstances, groups and contexts and by working with their scaled-up images I have hopefully given them a real presence in the context of The Whitaker today so that they are no longer hidden away in the background. Instagram: @sharonjbrownartist Read more Toggle Photography Digital