Exhibit explores gender inequalities and disparities

The latest installment at The Gallery at Penn College explores gender inequalities and the disparities women face. “Women’s Rights are Human Rights: International Posters on Gender-Based Inequality, Violence, and Discrimination” will be on display through April 17.

Amanda Lenig, department head of art and design and associate professor of graphic design at Susquehanna University’s School of the Arts, presented on “Lines, Curves, and Clichés: Symbols of Feminine Identity in Design” as part of an opening reception on March 26.

The exhibit reinforces the theme of a 1995 speech by Hillary Clinton in which she presents the idea that “if the term women’s rights were to be interchangeable with the term human rights, the world community would be a better place because human rights affect the women who raise the world’s children, care for the elderly, run companies, work in hospitals, fight for better education and better health care.”

Curator Elizabeth Resnick, professor emerita, graphic design, at Massachusetts College of Art and Design, pointed out that gender inequalities remain deeply entrenched in every society.

“Women lack access to decent work and face occupational segregation and gender wage disparities,” she said. “Women are often denied access to primary education and health care, suffer from violence and discrimination, and are underrepresented in political and economic decision-making processes.”

The exhibition, she added, features posters created by both men and women “to celebrate and acknowledge the vital role that all citizens should play in protecting and promoting human rights while actively challenging gender inequality and stereotypes, advancing sexual and reproductive rights, and protecting women and girls against brutality.”

The posters, Resnick continued, “promote women’s empowerment and participation in society while challenging religious and cultural norms and patriarchal attitudes that subordinate, stigmatize or restrict women from achieving their fullest potential.”
 

Penny G. Lutz, gallery director, said the posters – created between 1999 and 2024 – invite reflection on the progress made and the challenges that persist.

“Posters have long played a vital role in social justice movements,” she said. “This exhibition highlights the power of design as a tool for advocacy, public education and motivating critical thought and civic engagement.”

In addition to the featured posters, Lutz said visitors are invited to add their own voice to the exhibition through an interactive station where they can design and create their own poster. This opportunity will be in place through the close of the exhibit.

On display in the lobby of the gallery will be “Security Blanket: A Collaborative Women’s Art Project.” This piece is designed to bring together a wide range of issues affecting women and families, highlighting how individual concerns fit within a broader landscape of essential supports that contribute to well-being and equity. Project organizers invited artists and quilters to create an artwork modeled after a baby quilt. Each participant chose an issue beginning with a specific letter of the alphabet and designed a block to illustrate it. The A-Z quilt is a reflection of the supports a truly equitable society should provide. A dessert reception will be held from 2 to 3:30 p.m. on April 12. Lynn Estomin and other artists will provide comments at 2:30 p.m.  

The Gallery at Penn College is open from 2 to 8 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday, noon to 4 p.m. Fridays and 1 to 5 p.m. Sundays. It is closed on Mondays and Saturdays and between exhibitions. The gallery also will be closed on April 5.

In addition to serving as an educational resource for Penn College students and a cultural asset to the college and community, The Gallery at Penn College is dedicated to promoting art appreciation through exhibitions of contemporary art.

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