System of Silence
‘System of Silence’ represents the difficulty midwives have in trying to uphold human rights in childbirth in a maternity system that does not always function for the benefit of women and birthing people.
‘System of Silence’ was created by textile artist Helen Davies based on the input and experiences of Stevie McKenzie. Stevie is a hypnobirthing instructor and due to her interactions with pregnant women understood the issues many of them faced with maternity services. With a view to helping improve the system, Stevie began a degree in midwifery. However, within 6 months it became apparent to Stevie that it would be almost impossible to practise midwifery in the way she felt best - with women, birthing people and their human rights at the centre of care. Stevie could see that both midwives and pregnant women were struggling in the current maternity system.
During online workshops we decided that one way of demonstrating these issues in maternity care was to overlay an image of a pregnant woman against the backdrop of a midwife. The idea was that this would highlight the similar struggles they were facing. Helen did this by using tapestry crochet to create the image of the midwife and then used lace for the pregnant woman. During our discussions the theme of midwives and women being silenced was strong and therefore both images show the figures’ mouths sewn shut.
Helen first sketched the idea and these images became her template and inspiration for the textile piece. Once the tapestry crochet was complete, she then used a style of lace called needlelace. This is created by adding an outline - or cordonette - to a paper backing. The artist then makes thousands of buttonhole stitches to fill the space. Once all the spaces are filled, the artist can remove the backing and the lace will keep its shape. Helen made a wooden frame to keep the crochet and lace apart. The viewer can then see through the lace in different ways as they move around the piece.
Historically, lacemaking was a cottage industry typically associated with women and girls. When very young, girls could be sent to Lace Schools where they would learn the craft under harsh conditions. This included poor lighting, which could damage their eyesight in later years. In addition, in order to keep the lace clean, open fires were not used. The aim of this was to avoid soot marking the lace and it meant rooms were frequently cold. Pay was also poor and the hours long. In ‘System of Silence’ the use of lace becomes emblematic of many job roles populated largely by women - and this includes midwifery. In the UK, there is a significant shortage of midwives as the current system fails to adequately retain the midwives qualified to practice. Burnout is a recognised problem for maternity staff. Like the lacemakers, midwives can often be subjected to conditions that lead to them being overworked, underpaid and exhausted.
