Her Court: The Role Wimbledon Played in the Suffragette Movement (2-11 July 2026)

A Young Masters exhibition project in collaboration with Wimbledon Museum, presented in the Norman Plastow Gallery. Open daily: 2-11 July 2026, 11am-5pm. Gallery and Museum are also open during the events.

Entrance: Lingfield Road, 22 Ridgway, corner of Lingfield Road, London SW19 4QN
The Lingfield Room will host the talks, events and refreshments during the exhibition programme.

 
 
 
 

‘Her Court’ | 2-11 July 2026

‘Her Court’ is a special exhibition presented by Young Masters in the Norman Plastow Gallery at Wimbledon Museum, exploring women's stories, achievement, identity and cultural influence through contemporary art.

The exhibition is open daily from 11am-5pm from 2-11 July 2026.

Venue:
Norman Plastow Gallery
Wimbledon Museum
Entrance via Lingfield Road

View 'Her Court' Works For Sale
 

Exhibition Programme

Alongside the exhibition, Young Masters and Wimbledon Museum will present a programme of talks, performances and educational events throughout the exhibition period.

Admission to the exhibition is free. Please see individual Eventbrite listings below for talks and special events, where advance booking is recommended due to limited capacity.

Private View: Thursday 2 July 2026, 7-9pm | RSVP here
Talks Event: Friday 3 July 2026, 1.30-4pm | RSVP here
Time & Leisure ‘In Conversation’ with Helen Pankhurst CBE & Carmela Corbett: Tuesday, 7 July 2026, 5-7.30pm | RSVP here (talk starts at 6.30pm)
Finissage Tea: Saturday 11 July 2026, 3-6pm | RSVP here

We are thrilled to share the selected artists:

Alastair Gordon
Carolyn Tripp
Christophe Donot
Cristina Schek
Elizabeth O'Farrelly
Jo Holdsworth
Laura Dzelzytė
Lesley Boerio
Loraine Rutt
Louise Brooke
Ntiense Eno-Amooquaye
Robert Hodge
Sarah McAlister
Stephanie Jaffe

View 'Her Court' Works For Sale

Young Masters is delighted to present a new collaborative exhibition with Wimbledon Museum.

Drawing on the museum’s local history collections and archives, the exhibition explores the little-known relationship between Wimbledon and the women’s suffrage movement. The exhibition explores themes of courage, resistance, erasure, public voice, women’s lives, hidden stories, symbolism and colour, place, power and change.

The project engages with the suffrage palette of purple, white and green, the history of Wimbledon, and wider narratives surrounding women’s rights and representation. The exhibition will bring together contemporary artistic responses across disciplines, including painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, textiles, performance, film and digital practice.

Selected artists will have the opportunity to engage with the archives of Wimbledon Museum, creating work that responds to the exhibition’s curatorial themes and historical artefacts connected to the fight for women

The exhibition will place contemporary artworks in dialogue with archival materials and local social history within Wimbledon Museum’s historic setting.

Download the press release
 
 

Curatorial Research & Historical Context

The research behind Her Court focuses on the visual and symbolic relationship between Wimbledon, women’s suffrage and early twentieth-century political identity.

At the centre of this history is Rose Lamartine Yates, a leading suffrage campaigner and founder of the Wimbledon Women’s Social & Political Union (WWSPU). Deeply influenced by the social ideals of William Morris, Yates became a key organiser within militant suffrage activism. In 1909, she was imprisoned for her activism and later awarded the Holloway Brooch by the WWSPU. This brooch is now held in the Wimbledon Museum collection.

The exhibition also explores the symbolic overlap between the visual language of Wimbledon tennis and the suffrage movement. While Wimbledon itself was not a suffrage institution, its associations with discipline, visibility, respectability and dress codes intersect with the suffragettes’ strategic use of colour and public image.

Today, the suffrage colours of purple, white and green continue to resonate, forming visual bridges between political history, sport, fashion and contemporary identity.

Click here for full research materials
 

Exhibition Themes

Her Court considers how histories of protest, visibility and women’s political voice continue to resonate within contemporary culture today. The exhibition explores themes of courage, resistance, erasure, public voice, women’s lives, hidden stories, symbolism and colour, place, power and change.

 
 

About the Exhibition

Selected artists will take part in a collaborative museum exhibition with strong international visibility, presented by Young Masters in collaboration with Wimbledon Museum.

The exhibition will be promoted by Young Masters, Wimbledon Museum and the Wimbledon Society, reaching collectors, curators, cultural professionals and contemporary art audiences internationally. Young Masters currently reaches an engaged audience of over 63,000 collectors, curators, cultural professionals and contemporary art audiences across its digital platforms, website and mailing lists.

All exhibited work will be available for sale throughout the exhibition period, with sales split 50% to the artist and 50% to Young Masters.

 
 

Helen Pankhurst CBE is a women’s rights activist and advisor to the humanitarian and development organisation CARE International, having worked previously for WaterAid, Womankind Worldwide and ACORD. She is a Visiting Professor at MMU and was the first Chancellor of the University of Suffolk.

The great-granddaughter of Emmeline Pankhurst, she carries on the legacy e.g. through Centenary Action and GM4Women2028.

Professional Advisors & Curatorial Panel


The project is supported by a distinguished curatorial and advisory panel including:

  • Helen Pankhurst CBE, great-granddaughter of Emmeline Pankhurst and convenor of Centenary Action

  • Pamela Greenwood, Art Historian and Curator of Wimbledon Museum

  • Yasmin Jones Henry, Financial Times Writer, Cultural Placeshaping Strategist and Founder of The Lab W1

  • Sabine Taal, Dutch Fundraiser and Philanthropist

  • Sarah Jane Moon, British-New Zealand award-winning Artist and Educator

  • Liz Hoggard, Journalist and Art Critic

 

Credit Juliet Murphy Photography

  • Liz Hoggard is an arts interviewer and lifestyle writer for national newspapers and magazines including the Daily Telegraph, Selvedge and The Stage. She has published three books including Dangerous Women: A Guide to Modern Life.

  • Yasmin has built a reputation as a cultural and communications thought leader on the importance of culture, art and creative enterprise in delivering both social and economic value. As a journalist her portfolio is where fashion meets finance. Her expertise in research, tracking investment trends and translating the power of culture and commerce is borne out of her experience working for the Financial Times where she developed her specialisms in foreign direct investment, ESG investment and design. 

Credit Jason Ashwood Photography

  • Sarah Jane Moon (b.1982, Wellington, New Zealand) is a British New Zealand figurative painter based in London. Her work explores identity, gender and the performative aspects of self, often depicting figures alongside symbolic objects in vibrant, saturated colour. She is known for her energetic gestural mark making and rich impasto, which give her paintings a distinctive vitality. Her work has been shown widely both in the UK and internationally and is held in numerous international private and public collections.

  • Sabine Taal has a professional background in communication science. She combines her knowledge with her passion for the arts and commitment to support emerging artists in the world. 

  • An archaeologist since teenage, fieldwork and finds specialist, directing major excavations in East London as well as volunteering  locally. My PhD is in European Prehistory.  I have been a curator of a local collection since 1973, Assistant Curator Archaeology & Local History at Passmore Edwards Museum, a regional museum/Newham Museum Service 1977-1997 and Museum Curator, Wimbledon Museum from 2014. Additionally,  I am a historian and researcher. One of my interests is the struggle by women for recognition, qualifications and employment in higher education, science and archaeology, the 'Trowelblazers', challenges I have known about or faced. 

 
 

Professional Advisors

‘Holloway Brooch’ awarded to Rose Lamartine Yates, a local Suffragette, following her imprisonment in Holloway Prison (Museum of Wimbledon Collections)

About Young Masters

Founded in 2009 by gallerist Cynthia Valianti Corbett, the Young Masters Art Prize is a curatorial platform supporting emerging artists from across the world whose work is inspired by art history and the art of the past.

Originally established as a not-for-profit juried prize, Young Masters has, across six editions, supported over 400 artists internationally and developed a vibrant alumni network of emerging and established practitioners.

In 2026, Young Masters continues its revitalised mission to support artists through curated exhibitions, collaborations, fairs and digital platforms that bring contemporary artistic voices to wider audiences internationally.

This visibility and support can be career-defining, opening opportunities for exhibitions, sales, press coverage, institutional connections and gallery representation.

www.young-masters.co.uk | coordinator@young-masters.co.uk | +44 (0) 7939 085 076