HER PLACE was officially introduced to the City of Melbourne with a successful Pop Up Exhibition at the Melbourne Town Hall in May-June 2016.
Thanks to an arts grant from the City of Melbourne and the generosity of dedicated volunteers, Her Place Women's Museum profiled nine outstanding women through interactive displays complemented by a lively program of public talks.
Over 3 weeks the exhibition attracted over 2200 visitors to browse the gallery and participate in public forums and discussions on relevant topics, such as:
- Why do we need a Women’s Museum?
- What feminism means to young women
- The impact of family violence + what is being done
- Where are the women in sport?
Optimistic media coverage talked up the excitement of HER PLACE and the need for a place to salute women’s achievements and discuss the issues of our time.
The lack of women represented in Australian’s museums was acknowledged in a Museums Australia policy in 2000, highlighting the need for a place dedicated to discovery and debate around women's achievements and issues.
Due to space constraints we couldn’t accommodate large school group visits. High demand is a good problem to have! By the close of the exhibition, 130 students had attended and 17 schools requested Her Place speakers to visit their school.
The interactive ‘Post It’ Wall and Chalkboard recorded brilliant suggestions about the breadth of women’s contributions to Australia, while visitors' comments were enthusiastic and generous, urging us to get on with the task of building a Women’s Museum: