The Houses of Parliament’s year-long banner exhibition ‘The Beginning of that Freedome’ recently ended, and the organisations represented by artworks have officially been gifted their respective banners. An element of the 2015 anniversaries programme, the exhibition featured 18 large-scale banners, created by 9 artists. They represent 800 years of milestone ‘moments’ in our civil rights history, celebrating 750 years since the Simon de Montfort parliament (1265) and 800 years since the sealing of Magna Carta (1215).
The Shire Hall is due to receive an original artowork by UK-based disabled digital artist Jason Wilsher-Mills, who said: “I was inspired by memories of my father, a coal miner, and a lifelong member of a trade union, so the positive stories of what the unions had done to support working people were as much a part of my formative years as bedtime stories.
“I really wanted to make a banner that would pay tribute to these incredibly brave and inspiring men—the Tolpuddle Martyrs—because their actions would inspire those who were forming the very first trade unions. I took great time and care to choose colours, which would represent the countryside in Dorset, and the extreme conditions of life for transported prisoners in Australia. I wanted to create something beautiful for the martyrs that alluded to their cultural heritage—the wildlife and flowers of Dorset—while creating a narrative using metaphors and symbolism to deal with the hardships they experienced while being transported to Australia and their subsequent release. I used the bees to represent the journey to and from Australia. The worker bees represent the future trade union movement.”
Jason Wilsher-Mills uses high-resolution files and modern giclée printing methods to create large artworks about his disability, childhood memories, popular culture and social history.
Cllr Mary Penfold, West Dorset District Council’s Portfolio Holder for Enabling, said: “We are delighted to be gifted this exquisite artwork for the Shire Hall, which will be available to view at Congress House, the TUC headquarters in London until the revitalised Shire Hall opens in late 2017.”
Organisations Receiving Banners:
- 1215 Magna Carta: to be archived in the Parliamentary Archives
- 1265 Simon de Montfort parliament: Lewes Town Council (East Sussex)
- 1601 Poor Law: Bidston Avenue Primary School (Merseyside)
- 1628 Petition of Right: Brunel University London (Middlesex)
- 1647 Putney Debates: St. Mary’s Church, Putney (London)
- 1689 Bill of Rights: Mid and East Antrim Council (Mid and East Antrim)
- 1771 Wilkes: Freedom of Speech and Parliament: Lincoln Castle (Lincolnshire)
- 1807 Abolition of the Slave Trade: Westminster City Council (London)
- 1829 Catholic Emancipation Act: to be archived in the Parliamentary Archives
- 1832 Great Reform Act: Nottingham Castle (Nottinghamshire)
- 1833 Factory Act: Quarry Bank (Cheshire)
- 1834 Tolpuddle Martyrs: Shire Hall, Dorchester (Dorset)
- 1838 The People’s Charter: to be archived in the Parliamentary Archives
- 1897 Foundation of the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies (NUWSS): joint ownership and partnership between the National Football Museum (Manchester) and the National Federation of Women’s Institutes (England, Wales, Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Mann)
- 1965 Race Relations Act: School of Law, University of Leeds (Leeds)
- 1967 Sexual Offences Act: Thurston Community College (Suffolk
- 1995 Disability Discrimination Act: Shape Arts (London)
- 2015: to be archived in the Parliamentary Archives
Parliament will retain four banners in the Parliamentary Archives:
- 1215 Magna Carta
- 1829 Catholic Emancipation Act
- 1838 The People’s Charter
- 2015
