Symposium
Power for the People: Art, Protest, and the Archives of Activism
10:00–18:00
Victoria Hall, Saltaire
Drawing on the strong industrial heritages of Leeds and Bradford, this conference examines the role of protest and political activism in twentieth and twenty-first century art.
Bradford and Leeds have significant archival holdings relating to activist art. In Leeds we have the Archive of Sculptor’s Papers, part of Leeds Museums and Galleries and housed at Henry Moore Institute. In Bradford there is the Special Collections on Peace, Politics and Social Change, which stems from the University of Bradford’s Department for Peace Studies that was established in 1973 and has since developed into an independent library.
This conference questions the role politics should play in art today and how we understand the porous boundary between mass protest and art making. We’ll look at the histories sitting perhaps underappreciated in our archives and how they can they guide us into the future.
This event forms part of our Research Season – Bradford 2025: The Power of Public Sculpture, supported by Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture.
Main image: Unidentified flyer, c.1990s. Image courtesy National Disability Arts Collection & Archive.
Tickets
Tickets to this event are free, and can be booked online via Eventbrite.
Programme
Welcome and introductions
10:00
Kirstie Gregory, Henry Moore Institute and Jenny Harris, Bradford 2025
Session One: Archiving Global Protest
10:15
Chaired by Sophia Yadong Hao, Cooper Gallery
‘Gran Fury’s The Pope Piece: Aesthetics of Queer Protest during the HIV/AIDS Crisis’
Stefano Mudu, University of Bergamo
‘Protesting Body as Expanded Sculpture: From Street to Screen’
Raha Khademi, University of Bonn
‘(Dis)appearing Radical Gestures: Collectivity and Performativity in a Student Revolution’
Dr Eszter Lázár, Hungarian University of Fine Arts, Budapest
Break
11:30
Session Two: Localised Forms of Archival Practice
11:45
Chaired by Harry Jelley, Bradford 2025
‘The Counter-Hegemonic Potential of Civic Relationships in the Orchard Gallery’s Archives’
Ashab Arif Ahmad, Ulster University
‘Tracing a political way of life in Scotland’s archives: Helen Biggar’s art as activism’
Cicely Farrer, University of St Andrews/Glasgow School of Art Archives & Collections
‘Resisting Regeneration of the Aylesbury Estate’
Rachel Ashenden, independent
Lunch
13:00
Included with your ticket
Session Three: National Museums and Archives of Dissent
14:00
Chaired by Kirstie Gregory, Henry Moore Institute
‘When is a Lock-On Illegal? Disobedient Objects and Acts of Civil Disobedience’
Dr Sophie Mak-Schram, Cardiff Metropolitan University
‘Mail Art as Feminist Protest and Archival Practice: The Postal Art Event and Patricia Collins’ Women and Mail Art Project’
Xinyu Shi, independent
‘Sex, Lies and Panic: Transgender Archiving Practices against the Disinformation Agenda’
Chloe Turner, Goldsmiths University of London
‘ABSTRACT: BODIES OF WORK: Disability rights & Disability art’
Alex Cowan and Tony Heaton, National Disability Arts Collection and Archive and Colin Hambrook, Disability Arts Online
Break
15:30
Session Four: Digital Documentation and the Archive
15:45
Chaired by Dr Emily Gray, Henry Moore Institute
‘Sculpting Absence, Assembling Protest: Expanded Archives of ESEA Identity’
Nam Huh, Loughborough University
‘The invisible collective: ‘biased’ archiving and discourse in digital activist art’
Yang Feng, University of Leeds
‘Archiving Dissent: Political Cartoons and Protest Memory in Tunisian Digital Sphere’
Dr Asma Hedi Nairi, International Detention Coalition/Sabanci University
Closing remarks
17:00
Research season & related events
Bradford 2025: The Power of Public Sculpture
Autumn 2025
This research season presents a series of events supported by Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture.
Together we are celebrating Bradford and Britain’s rich sculptural, architectural and political history and looking to the future for the region and its artists.
Film screening
Jeremy Deller’s The Battle of Orgreave
18:00–19:00
Book your free ticket
Symposium
Power for the People: Art, Protest, and the Archives of Activism
10:00–18:00
Book your free ticket
Accessibility
We want to make it as easy as possible for all to attend, so please get in touch with research@henry-moore.org if you have any access needs that you would like to discuss before the event.
Getting here
Victoria Hall
Victoria Hall
Victoria Rd
Saltaire
Shipley
BD18 3JS
UK
T: 01274 327305
E: hello@victoriahallsaltaire.com