Drawing Acts Drawing Act I Nicole Morris 24 Jan 2020 – 27 Feb 2020 Back Labour, Faith, Exhaustion This Drawing Act was the first a series of live participatory projects which seek to bring new perspectives to the exhibition programme, delving deeper into shared experiences of labour, faith and exhaustion which were explored as autobiographical themes in Donna Huddleston’s show, The Exhausted Student. Mimicking collectives of women that would congregate to design and make quilts, the group drew around domestic objects, making patterns out of tools we live and work with. The word quilt, connected to ‘culcita’, Latin for bolster, a cushion became a symbol of the support the individuals in the group gave each other. Over the weeks, drawings evolved into experimental drawn films and a large-scale batik, culminating in a small edition of circular publications which are available in Drawing Room’s Study Library. The collaborative artwork is hung on display at The Bridge. Nicole Morris is an artist working across exhibition, learning and community contexts, using textiles and film to explore methods of performance and collaboration. Previous exhibitions include: Survey, Jerwood Visual Arts, London; G39, Cardiff; Bluecoat, Liverpool & Baltic, Gateshead, 2019. Interiors, Compressor Projects, London. INGEST | digest | excrete, with Maria de Lima, [SPACE], London, 2018. Sisters, Space In Between, London, 2017. The Bridge is a charity based in London Bridge, working to reduce inequalities in health and wellbeing by supporting women to make positive life choices. Southwark Women’s Space provides gender-specific and personalised support, helping to equip women with the tools and resources to address their needs through one-to-one advocacy. Thank you to all involved: Angela, Annie, Bianca, Clare, Madeleine, Patricia, Sonia, Sylvie and Zainab, participants, The Bridge Amy Rose Barnes, Learning Assistant, Drawing Room Betsy Dadd, Learning Curator, Drawing Room Charlotte Crew, Programme Coordinator, The Bridge Joy Grimshaw, Director, The Bridge Nicole Morris, Artist Sheyamali Sudesh, Learning Coordinator, Drawing Room Sarah Hicks, Support Worker, The Bridge Scrapbook I loved having conversations with likeminded creative women. Patricia I saw confidence in this room that I have never seen before. Sylvie