Her Court: The Role Wimbledon Played in the Suffragette Movement
A Young Masters Exhibition Project In collaboration with Wimbledon Museum
The Young Masters Open Call 2026 has now closed.
Thank you to all artists who submitted proposals for Her Court: The Role Wimbledon Played in the Suffragette Movement.
Selected artists and exhibition details will be announced shortly.
Young Masters is delighted to announce 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.
Artists are invited to submit proposals responding to themes including:
women’s visibility and empowerment
protest and public voice
cultural memory and heritage
feminist history
symbolism and colour
sport and social identity
archives and reinterpretation
Particular encouragement is given to proposals engaging with the suffrage palette of purple, white and green, the history of Wimbledon, or wider narratives surrounding women’s rights and representation.
This Open Call welcomes artists working across all disciplines, including painting, sculpture, ceramics, photography, textiles, performance, film and digital practice.
Selected artists will have the opportunity to work with the archives of Wimbledon Museum and create work responding to both the curatorial themes and the historical artefacts connected to the fight for women’s rights.
The exhibition will place contemporary artworks in dialogue with archival materials and local social history within Wimbledon Museum’s historic setting.
Curatorial Research & Historical Context
Our research has focused on the visual and symbolic relationship between Wimbledon, women’s suffrage and early twentieth-century political identity.
Particular attention has been given to Rose Lamartine Yates, a leading figure in the women’s suffrage movement and founder of the Wimbledon Women’s Social & Political Union (WWSPU).
Yates was deeply influenced by the social ideals of William Morris and became a central organiser within militant suffragist 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 intriguingly with the suffragettes’ strategic use of colour and public image.
Today, the suffrage colours of purple, white and green continue to resonate culturally, forming visual bridges between political history, sport, fashion and contemporary identity.
Exhibition Themes
Submissions and expressions of interest are warmly encouraged from artists whose work reflects the spirit of historical engagement and reinterpretation that defines the Young Masters programme.
Artists are invited to submit:
a proposal outlining the work they wish to create
examples of existing work
an estimated size
a working title
pricing in GBP
Proposals may be in any medium, including performance and digital work.
Deadline
The Open Call is open on CuratorSpace until midnight on 16 May 2026.
Exhibition & Artist Opportunities
Selected artists will benefit from participation in a collaborative museum exhibition with strong international visibility.
All exhibited work will be available for sale throughout the exhibition period, with sales split: 50% artist and 50% Young Masters The exhibition will be promoted internationally by Young Masters, Wimbledon Museum and the Wimbledon Society.
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.
Helen Pankhurst, great-granddaughter of Emmeline Pankhurst
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
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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.
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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
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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.
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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.
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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.
Public Programme
Alongside the exhibition, Young Masters and Wimbledon Museum will present a public programme of talks, performances and educational events.
Current Event Dates:
Private View: Thursday 2 July 2026
Talks Event: Friday 3 July 2026
Finissage Coffee Afternoon: Saturday 11 July 2026
Additional events will be announced.
Professional Advisors
Helen Pankhurst
https://centenaryaction.co.uk/
Pamela Greenwood
https://wimbledonsociety.org.uk/museum/
Yasmin Jones Henry
https://www.yjhconsulting.com/about-yjh
Sabine Taal
https://www.houseandsoul.design/about
Sarah Jane Moon
https://sarahjanemoon.com/
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