Dear woman : an exploration of the transition from girlhood to womanhood through artistic engagement with vernacular archival material

Abstract

Hearing happens without asking. It arrives uninvited and effortlessly. Listening, however, is to lean in. It is a conscious act, a gesture of presence, a decision to pay attention and not just with the ears. This dissertation is, above all, an exercise in listening with purpose and with intent. At its centre are the voices of women reflecting on the, often unspoken, passage from girlhood to womanhood. Yet the listening that shapes this work stretches beyond these intimate recollections. It stands quietly in opposition to the noise and velocity of the world we inhabit. One where reaction too easily replaces reflection. In one of his final public messages before his passing in April 2025, Pope Francis urged the youth, not to shout louder, but to listen more deeply. “We are losing the ability to listen to those in front of us,” he said, calling listening “the most precious and life-giving gift we can offer each other.”. The following work reimagines listening as both as a method and a mode of care; an artistic practice grounded in empathy, attention and reflection. To listen is to hold space for meaning to surface, to honour the vulnerability of what is shared, and to meet each other with compassion and care.