To mark its 150th Anniversary in 2021-2022 Newnham commissioned a work of art by artist Erika Tan. A Legacy for a Future Unknown comprises banners hung from the ceilings of College Hall and a series of decorative plates. A third element, a video work, will complete the commission.
The commission adds to a long tradition at Newnham of recognising important College events and individuals through works of art and design, with examples such as the Clough Memorial Gates (1894) by Basil Champneys, The Four Seasons (1958) by Geoffrey Clarke, and the Centenary Candlesticks (1971) by Keith Tyssen.
Erika Tan’s approach to the commission was to create a work of art specific to Newnham through a process of collaboration and engagement with the College community, and research into the College history and site. Her artwork includes texts contributed by College members and imagery drawn from the gardens and architecture. What also makes Erika’s designs relevant to Newnham is the inspiration she has taken from other works in the art collection, and, in recognition of the College's identity in promoting women’s status in society, the associations she has made with key works of feminist art and pioneering women artists.
Image © Jo Underhill
At first glance, Erika’s decorative plates may be seen as typical commemorative objects. Indeed, Newnham’s collection includes historic ‘collectable’ plates, featuring the College coat of arms and rimmed in gold. Yet it was the 19th-century blue Multan ceramics on display in the Porters’ Lodge that caught Erika’s attention. Bearing a message of ‘welcome’ in Persian script, the text within these plates is not immediately understood by all members of College, an idea that Erika has expanded on through the use of multiple languages in her designs. The blue and white style of the plates, evocative of traditional Chinese pottery and English Wedgwood, is derived from the style of cyanotype prints and refers to the work of pioneering botanical artist, collector and photographer Anna Atkins.
By producing plates to be used as a dinner set, Erika also makes clear connections to Bloomsbury Group artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant’s Famous Women Dinner Service (1932) and artist Judy Chicago’s The Dinner Party (1979), an epic work of feminist art featuring the names of mythical and historical famous women; amongst them Newnham’s first Principal Anne Jemima Clough (after whom the College dining hall is named).
A further element of Erika’s work is the series of printed and individually sewn banners hung from the beams of Clough Hall. The Cambridge Alumnae suffrage banner (1908), one of the most treasured items in Newnham’s collection, was Erika’s point of inspiration for the 30 new banners; their segmented style and prominent texts all influenced by the design of the historic precedent. Another suffrage banner featured within Newnham's collection is the banner held by Millicent Garrett Fawcett in the Courage Calls statuette (2018) by artist Gillian Wearing, a small-scale replica of the statue at Parliament Square.
Image © Jo Underhill
Erika’s banner designs, as well as reflecting the spirit of activism for which Newnham is rightly proud, also call to mind the heraldic banners used for celebratory and ceremonial purposes and bring a sense of spectacle and occasion to the heart of the College on its Anniversary.
Image © Jo Underhill