The Canary Girls
The Canary Girls is a collection of Millinery inspired by a group of heroic women in the 1940's who worked as Munitionettes in Munitions factories in Great Britain. They came into existence as the demand for munitions at the war front increased and the male work force was depleted because of wartime conscription.
I researched into the stories of these brave women who served their country working long, hard and dangerous days packing shells and bullets with Trinitroluene who paid a very high price "to do their bit" for the British war effort. TNT was a hazardous chemical and prolongued exposure to the sulfuric acid it contained caused depigmentation. The toxic substance penetrated their hair and skin and turned it yellow. As a result this plucky group of women were nicknamed "The Canary Girls".
Such a contrast, the life of a Milliner and that of a Munitionette. I thought about how different our lives were. These brave women who every day risked life and limb, whilst my days were filled with fluff and feathers. In my own small way I wanted to highlight their story and raise some awareness to pay tribute to these incredible ladies whose sacrifices during both World Wars went largely unrecognised, by creating a small collection of hats in their honour.
Welcome to my online art exhibition launched in 2021 This collection was created and exhibited at the London Design Festival in 2021, 2022 and 2023 . For those that want to view the new works created this year they will be added to this gallery shortly.