Overview

Blood Sweat and Tears is a large-scale textile artwork exploring the lived experience of menopause through humour, honesty and care. The quilt brings private experiences into public conversation. It uses textile practice to address a life stage that is widely shared yet often underrepresented.

Title: Blood Sweat and Tears — The Menopause Quilt (2020)
Medium & Size: Silk, paint and stitch | 205 × 230 cm
Themes: Menopause, women’s health, care, humour, visibility, textile art
Audience Engagement: Invites close viewing, reflection and conversation; suitable for gallery and public spaces
Exhibition History: INSIGHTS, The Festival of Quilts, Birmingham NEC, 2021 (audience ~26,000)
Display Options: Wall-mounted or quilt installation; flexible for venue space

Background

The work was created during a period of intense change within the artist’s own household, shared with a peri-menopausal woman and two hormonal teenagers. At times chaotic and emotionally charged, this experience became the starting point for the artwork.

Making provided a way to process uncertainty — a space for reflection, learning and understanding. The project also became a catalyst for conversations about menopause, both for the artist and for audiences encountering the work.

Materials and Visual Language

The quilt is made from soft silk fabric chosen for its sensual, comforting qualities. Luxurious and inviting, the material encourages viewers to move closer and spend time with the piece.

Painted and stitched across the blood-red surface are everyday objects rarely represented in artworks but familiar to many middle-aged women, including suppositories, panty liners, hand cream, KY Jelly and hot water bottles. These domestic and medical items sit alongside decorative textile traditions, challenging expectations of what is considered suitable subject matter.

Text and Narrative

Written onto the objects are quotations from menopausal women, advice gathered from online forums, and references to both common and lesser-known symptoms.

From a distance the quilt appears warm and decorative; closer viewing reveals layers of humour, vulnerability and shared testimony. The work rewards slow looking, inviting recognition, empathy and conversation.

Exhibition History

Blood Sweat and Tears was exhibited as part of INSIGHTS at The Festival of Quilts, Birmingham NEC, in 2021, reaching an audience of approximately 26,000 visitors.

---

Exhibition Information

• Large-scale textile artwork suitable for gallery and public exhibition spaces
• Designed to encourage close viewing and conversation
• Can be displayed wall-mounted or as a quilt installation (details available on request)

For exhibition enquiries or further information, please get in touch:

Find out more

Interested in current or upcoming exhibitions, or discussing future opportunities?

→ Sign up to the newsletter for updates
→ Get in touch