Us Women 2024: Celebrating women through art

Women's History Month is one of much significance. Every Year, GenLab arranges various activities, including art exhibitions, to celebrate the month. It was not much different this year either, other than the fact that the event was held much later. The 'Us Women 2024' exhibition is being hosted by EMK Centre and organised by GenLab, running from 27 May to 23 June, and inaugurated by veteran artist Papa Nurun Nahar.

The exhibition celebrates women's creativity and achievements during Women's History Month. Both online and in-person, the event showcases art that highlights women's stories and voices. The theme of the exhibition is 'Eco-Feminism: Redefining Economic Success in the Face of Air Quality & Environmental Inequities.'

"The 'Us Women' Art Exhibition, under the theme of eco-feminism, aimed to convey a profound message about the intertwined relationship between women and nature, highlighting their collective resilience and advocacy for environmental justice," said Ishrat Binte Rouf, the curator of the event and the programme head of GenLab.

"The exhibition is structured around a simple yet important statement, acknowledging the relationship between women and nature and how women struggle with adverse climate scenarios. We got submissions from a seven-year-old school going girl child artist to a 67 year old artist. It depicts the exhibition objective and the message is understood by almost everyone," she further added.

Women's empowerment is crucial for a better future going forward. But as things stand, women are still neglected and largely deprived of many opportunities in society to this day. Even practising the arts for women is a hurdle, due to many factors and beliefs of the people. Which is why, the exhibition showcased paintings and artworks made only by women, to show how they can shine equally as good if given the chance.