The Vagina Museum was founded in response to a lack of gynaecological representation within the culture and heritage sector throughout the world. Its mission is to:
Spread knowledge and raise awareness of the gynaecological anatomy and health
Give confidence to people to talk about issues surrounding the gynaecological anatomy
Erase the stigma around the body and gynaecological anatomy
Promote intersectional, feminist and trans-inclusive values
The museum hosts two temporary exhibitions per year which will explore a multitude of topics surrounding gynaecological health, social history, activism and discourse, as well as an events programme of talks, workshops, comedy, theatre and performance art.
History
The project to create the Vagina Museum was launched when the founder, Florence Schechter, discovered there was a penis museum in Iceland, the Icelandic Phallological Museum, but there was no equivalent for the vagina or vulva.
2017–2018
The Museum's first event, a comedy fundraiser, was held on 19 May 2017 headlined by Hayley Ellis. It has run a number of events since, including participating in a residency with The Mothership Group called Superculture. Events as part of this residency have included a talk on "Vulvanomics" by Emma L. E. Rees, author of The Vagina: A Literary and Cultural History, and a screening of the film Teeth followed by a Q&A with Amanda DiGioia, the author of Childbirth and Parenting in Horror Texts: The Marginalized and the Monstrous and various comedy nights. They have also done events at Limmud Festival 2017 and the Royal Institution. The Museum held its first exhibition in August 2017 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Its second pop up exhibition was called "Is Your Vagina Normal?", and it travelled around the UK to Ancient House, Thetford, Brainchild Festival 2018, SQIFF 2018 and Museums Association Conference 2018. In the 2017 Women Of The Future Awards, Schechter was commended in the arts and culture category for her work with the Vagina Museum. The permanent museum will have exhibitions on the gynaecological anatomy from science to art to culture. The museum will be trans-inclusive.
2019: Crowdfunding campaign and Camden Market premises
On 21 March 2019, the Vagina Museum to raise money to open a premises in Camden Market. The project is supported by Camden Council, and leader of Camden Council, Georgia Gould says:
“Camden has a proud and radical history of challenging prejudice and orthodoxy, however, we acknowledge that the stigma associated with talking about gynaecological health has meant ignorance, confusion, shame, and poor medical care for too many. 65 % of 16-to-25 year olds say they have a problem using the word vagina or vulva with almost half of 18-to-24 year old women say they are too embarrassed to talk about sexual health issues. We are therefore incredibly excited that the Vagina Museum is seeking to establish in Camden, and hope that it is funded to provide an inclusive and intersectional centre for learning, creativity, activism, and outreach that will add immeasurably to our collective understanding of our bodies.”
The crowdfunder raised £48,945 and in October 2019, the museum moved into Camden Stables Market and began a programme of events. It opened its first exhibition, Muff Busters: vagina myths and how to fight them in November 2019. This exhibition will end on 29 March 2020 and the next exhibition, Periods : a brief history will run from 4 April 2020 to 25 October 2020.
