Emma Fitts here pays tribute to a significant local artist of an earlier generation. Blouse and Trousers for Olivia Spencer Bower is based on the cut pieces from garment patterns and belongs to a series of abstract cloth collages exploring women whose stories are often simplified or overlooked. Alongside this work and as part of Victor & Hester, a collaborative project with Amelia Bywater, Fitts also created an online research platform whatwasishappening.tumblr.com, presenting research into the histories and contexts of three female figures: Marlow Moss (UK), Rowena Cade (UK) and Marilyn Waring (Aotearoa), “exploring processes of re-performing and re-documenting to potentially set the histories of these women”. Victor & Hester use interviews, images, documents and links that connect out to a broader field of research to reconsider and amplify, highlighting the interpersonal and fragmentary aspects of research materials. Unfortunately, online platforms are by their nature inherently unstable, with Tumblr losing popularity and the demands of ongoing payments to sustain a presence meaning accessibility of this research is also temporary.

(Living Archives, 25 October 2025 – 8 March 2026)