On Saturday 6 September the artist Ailie Rutherford gave a presentation celebrating 10 years of the Feminist Exchange Network and the People’s Bank of Govanhill. The event took place in the exhibition Domestic Bliss, which is a display of works from Glasgow Life Museums’ collection emanating from the selection of the work Yellow Foot Sofa by Nicola L and her feminist interventions through her furniture/sculptures in domestic spaces where at the time she was making them, women were expected to be.  Limited by the works in the collection at the time and also considering the curator’s role in the display – as a white, straight, middle class woman – artist commissions or events have over time critiqued, expanded and intersected with the works on display. We were delighted that we were able to host this event With Ailie to celebrate 10 years of Feminist Exchange Network, referring to the feminist economics present in the show, but also some of the artists Ailie has worked with over the years are in the museums’ collection and on display in GoMA.

Ailie Rutherford interweaves her own activist and artist practice with projects that thrive off community, connectedness and generosity through other models of economics. At the same time acknowledging that this type of work is precarious relying on women and care givers who are balancing many responsibilities in the context of a difficult financial, social and political climate.

Below you can find a video with a sound recording of the talk that has been set alongside the slides from the presentation.

Please note the sound recording is not high quality and if you require the transcript, please find that here.

The conversation that followed acknowledged this work undertaken and the creativity, energy and joy out of it, but also highlighted in the current climate how easily this type of work is easily erased through lack of funds – institutional, grant awards and personal. Ending hopefully with a call to see how we can come together, meet, and continue to energise practices that centre feminist principles to create social change based on human solidarity.