Project
Men’s Voices
A multimedia exhibition co-produced with men and boys to explore the stereotypes and pressures surrounding masculinity, asking the question – what does it mean to be a man?
Project purpose
Audiences of our play Make Do in Mend queried why men commit abuse, calling for their side of the story. This inspired us to consider whether male stereotypes could be contributing to the picture of outcomes for men wherein:
- Three quarters of suicides are by men
- Men are more likely to misuse drugs and alcohol, go missing and commit violent crime
- Men are less likely to access psychological therapies or the support of friends
We wanted to empower men to question destructive norms and explore healthier patterns.
Project Outcomes
The artwork and insights of our participatory artists reflecting on their process of community engagement drew out the sense of frustration and confusion men felt at the “norms they should conform to” with many still assuming traditional gender roles whilst also feeling “they did not fit the mould.”
Our exhibition audience, as well as young people from local schools who engaged in art-making workshops based around the exhibition content (St John’s School and Sixth Form College, a Catholic Academy and Durham Johnston Comprehensive School) found these insights powerful and important, encouraging empathy, reflection and discussion and challenging pre-existing beliefs such as the idea that it’s “not cool” for boys to “show emotion.”
The widespread media coverage of our project indicated the resonance of the theme and our approach, with interviews on Bishop FM, Spark FM and BBC Newcastle as well as features in the Northern Echo, Teesdale Mercury and Guardian.
Bringing the project to life
Community engagement
Our creative team ran workshops with a diverse group of marginalised men and boys (including Deerbolt Young Offenders Institute, men’s cree groups in Eldon Lane and Stanley, The Woodlands School andBarnardo’s Domestic Violence Perpetrator Programme). This comprised story-sharing, creative writing and a range of visual arts methods such as textiles and print-making.
Public sharing
Our artists produced a body of work responding to this community engagement, which, together with artwork produced by our participants, was displayed in an exhibition in Empty Shop’s TESTT Space in Durham City in October 2017. Public workshops were offered, as well as a panel discussion as part of Durham Book Festival featuring “Manufacturing Men,” a piece we commissioned from Ross Raisin to reflect on our participant testimony, which featured in the Guardian.
Reflection and development
During our community engagement, we noted a tendency for men and boys displaying sensitivity or sharing mental health challenge to be mocked by women and girls, and girls in deprived areas planning to become financially dependent on a male partner. This inspired us to plan the follow-on project, Stepping Out Of the Box, to allow us to explore the impact of gender stereotypes more broadly.
Our
Impact
Related materials
Exhibition Catalogue
Purchase a hard copy of our Stepping Out Of the Box exhibition catalogue packed full of poetry and imagery exploring how gendered childhood toys shape our identity and aspirations and the impact these cultural norms can have on our mental wellbeing.
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Zine
Aimed at encouraging teen boys to question the degree to which masculinity stereotypes are healthy / harmful, our Lads, Lads, Lads zine can be used in school or youth work contexts to encourage healthy as opposed to “toxic” masculinity.
Find out more