Dr Christina Henri, Honorary Artist in Residence at Cascades Female Factory Historic Site Tasmania, will be visiting the Isle of Man to present a lecture entitled ‘Two Sides of a Coin’ which includes a brief overview of the story of women convicts, whist identifying the connections between Australia and the Island through the story.
Dr Henri will discuss her motivation in conceiving the project ‘Roses from the Heart’, which remembers 25,566 convict women transported to Australia from the British Isles and Ireland from 1788 to 1853 through the creation of unique installations, images and paintings. The artist conceived the bonnet symbol as a signifier of the convict women’s worth and she has invited people throughout the world to make a bonnet tribute to commemorate each convict. Bonnets created by local embroiderers will be on display on the evening of the lecture.
Within the lecture ‘Two Sides of a Coin - The importance of art in evoking stories, memory and a sense of place and time’, Dr Henri will focus on the convicts’ stories of Manx people or those sentenced from the Isle of Man. Dr Henri will also reveal the history of the boat building industry on the Isle of Man that produced the vessels that transported convicts across the seas to the southern continent of Australia.
Dr Christina Henri said,
“Within the lecture I will talk about ‘Roses from the Heart’,how it began and why I am determined to see this unique Memorial become a reality. I will point to a number of events that have emerged as highlights along the way and plans for the future”.
The illustrative lecture which will be hosted at the Manx Museum lecture theatre on Friday 2nd November, 7.30pm (doors open at 7.00pm), will consider the importance of bringing communities together and connecting families who are related through mutual ancestral ties. The talk will emphasise the significance of research and show examples of the value of sharing stories and documentation together with the importance of gathering information on the lives of the women before they were exiled from their homeland and combining that with stories of their experiences in Australia.
Anthea Young- Education Services Officer for Manx National Heritage said,
‘Convict transportation from the Isle of Man to the penal colonies during the 18th and 19th centuries severed many ancestral lines for numerous Manx families. Numerous emotive stories about transported Manx men and women have been revealed by scrupulous research by Hampton Creer in his publication ‘Never to Return’. As access to digitised records becomes more readily available and communication across the globe is ever increasing, more and more families are becoming reunited with each other and with their ancestors’ stories.’
Tickets are ?8 and available to purchase from the Manx Museum shop. Places are limited so please purchase your tickets in advance.
