ArtsNational Canberra Guest: Tessa Boase Lecture
FASHION, FEATHERS AND FEMINISM: WOMEN’S FIGHT FOR CHANGE
When Tessa told the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds she wanted to write their early story, they refused to let her visit their archives — a challenge Tessa could not resist. In this lecture Tessa looks at the intriguing story of women’s love affair with plumage, and of the brave eco-feminists who fought back on behalf of the birds. Moving from a polite Victorian tea party to an egret hunt in a Florida swamp; from a suffragette ‘monster rally’ to a milliner’s workshop, Tessa takes you back to a time where every woman, of every class, wore a hat.
When Tessa told the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds she wanted to write their early story, they refused to let her visit their archives — a challenge Tessa could not resist. In this lecture Tessa looks at the intriguing story of women’s love affair with plumage, and of the brave eco-feminists who fought back on behalf of the birds. Moving from a polite Victorian tea party to an egret hunt in a Florida swamp; from a suffragette ‘monster rally’ to a milliner’s workshop, Tessa takes you back to a time where every woman, of every class, wore a hat.
Tuesday 18 August 2026 6:00 PM - 7:45 PM (UTC+11)
Location
National Library of Australia
Parkes ACT 2600
Contact Details