A Space For All Voices

The Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic and the Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art have partnered to raise awareness about violence against women and girls through an exhibition of clay works created over a period of 12-weeks within a healing expressive arts group facilitated by art therapist Suzanne Thomson and artist Susan Low-Beer.

This year, participants were asked to reflect on the following lines from a poem by Adrienne Rich, “Spirit like water moulded by unseen stone.” The intent was for each of the participants to respond to Rich’s words by sculpting in clay their unique experiences of trauma. The result of their explorations will culminate in an exhibition at the Gardiner Museum titled A Space for all Voices.

Group Statement

I am finding my voice through the gift of creativity
Sharing my story, I reclaim my power
I was born to please my father’s tribe
Phoenix rises from the ashes
Giving voice to something that is beyond words
From fragments to whole
Celebrating the immensity of human experience
We are but many voices, with different perspectives and experiences
We come together as a community with respect
Transforming our lives through the transformation of clay
Freeing our spirits to experience art
Daring the deep
Willingness to cross over
Sharing our journeys in recreating our resilience

About the Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic

The Barbra Schlifer Commemorative Clinic is a specialized clinic for women experiencing violence. It assists over 5,000 women a year to build lives free from violence through counselling, legal representation and language interpretation. To learn more about the Clinic and the services it offers, please visit schliferclinic.com.