Medical history has demonstrated that the bodies of women and assigned female at birth (AFAB) people have been repeatedly overlooked and wrongly diagnosed. Incited by this lack of universal awareness, this ongoing series aims to ethically visualise health experiences that affect women and AFAB people, to make viewers aware of the emotional strain caused by them, and the need for more educational conversations around our health.

Phoebe Wingrove first exhibited In the Dark in Photo Fringe 2022, as a response to her diagnosis of high-risk HPV and CIN 2 abnormal cells.

In the Dark: Birth follows on to depict Wingrove’s friend Annie’s traumatic experience of birth, through photographic images that present green abstract bodily forms and typographic fabric posters that encompass the emotional strain of birth and the (in)visible transition into motherhood. Wingrove encourages viewers to reflect on their own health experiences and / or the ones of their friends and family using the words and images of Annie’s to explore their own.

Phoebe Wingrove (b.1996) is an artist using abstract photography and mixed media to ethically visualise health experiences of women and AFAB (assigned female at birth) people. Her work serves as a conduit for exploring her own health experiences as well as those of her friends and family. She holds a BA in Graphic Design from Nottingham Trent University, where her design expertise significantly influences her visual creations. In 2022, she completed a PGCE at the University of Brighton, fuelling her passion for raising awareness and creating educational opportunities about women’s health through art. She lives and works in Brighton, England.