We have partnered with the newly launched Tommy’s National Centre for Preterm Birth Research and Imperial College London to run a series of participatory commissions over the next 3-5 years. These new artworks will eventually become part of the Birth Rites Collection.
Unspoken Beginnings: Poetic Reflections on Black Women's Pre-Term Births
Call for Black Women with Experience of Pre-Term Birth
Collaboration with Jamaican poet Courtney Conrad
We invite black women to share their personal experiences with pre-term birth in a creative and supportive project. Whether your experience was recent or decades ago, your story matters, and we are here to listen. Your journey will inspire a unique poetic response that seeks to honor the complexity of pre-term birth and celebrate your strength. Age and the length of time since your birth experience are not factors—if you’ve lived through pre-term birth, we want to hear from you.
You will have the opportunity to share your story in an in-person session with the poet Courtney Conrad which will take up to one hour and then join the follow up focus group session lasting up to an hour and thirty minutes max.
ONE TO ONE SHARING
LOCATION: @ Tommy's National Centre for Preterm Birth Research, Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Imperial College London, Hammersmith Campus, Du Cane Road, London, W12 0NN (30 mins - hour) Date TBC
LOCATION: @ Chapeltown Children’s Centre, 62 Leopold Street, Leeds, LS7 4AW (30 mins - hour) 21st November 2024
FOCUS GROUP
LOCATION: Follow up focus group @ ONLINE (up to 90 mins) Date: TBC
These sessions will be safe, respectful, and supportive, allowing you to express your experiences freely and without judgment. Led by Poet, Courtney Conrad, Jamaican poet based in England, this opportunity will help you tell your story.
POETIC RESPONSE
Based on your shared experiences, a creative poetic response will be developed to reflect and honor your narrative. The poetry will be shaped by the essence of your story, capturing its depth and significance.
POETRY WORKSHOP
21st November 2024 12.30- 2.00pm
LOCATION: @ Chapeltown Children’s Centre, 62 Leopold Street, Leeds, LS7 4AW
For those interested in exploring their own creative voices, we are also offering an optional poetry workshop, led by Courtney Conrad In this workshop, you will:
Engage in guided poetic prompts to help you reclaim your narrative around pre-term birth.
Receive tools and inspiration to craft your own story using poetry as a powerful and advocating medium.
Participate in a supportive environment where your voice and experience are centered.
This is a unique opportunity to transform pain into art and reflect on a profound experience in a space that uplifts and empowers Black women. Share your story, and allow us to create poetry that honors your experience.
If you're ready to contribute or would like more information, please reach out to us. Together, let’s turn stories of pre-term birth into lasting and impactful art.
Please note that a voucher for your participation will be provided.
This project is in partnership with Tommy’s Preterm Birth Research Project, Imperial College, London and Birth Rites Collection, T: Jayne Wagstaff on 0113 2066473 (Leeds)
Courtney Conrad, Poet
Courtney Conrad is a Jamaican poet. Her debut pamphlet I Am Evidence is published by Bloodaxe Books. She is a winner of the Eric Gregory Award, Michael Marks Award, Bridport Prize Young Writers Award and Mslexia Women’s Pamphlet Prize. Shortlisted for The White Review Poet's Prize, the Manchester Poetry Prize, the Oxford Brookes International Poetry Competition, the Aesthetica Creative Writing Award’s Poetry Prize, the Bridport Poetry Prize, Derby Poetry Festival Poetry Prize and the Poetry Wales Pamphlet competition. She is currently a Cave Canem fellow and an alumna of The London Library Emerging Writers Programme, Barbican Young Poets and Roundhouse Poetry Collective. She has been commissioned by the Museum of London, Institute of Contemporary Arts, Fuel Theatre, Apples and Snakes, Victoria & Albert Museum, Guildhall, Tate Britain, BBC 1Xtra, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, The Sidings, John's Hopkins University, The University of Warwick, Weclome Trust and Spread the Word.
