In Plain Sight
In Plain Sight confronts one of the most enduring questions asked of victims: "What was she wearing?" Rather than examining the victim, the exhibition shifts attention to the perpetrator. Through twelve items of ordinary clothing representing different offender profiles, it demonstrates that those who commit abuse are often trusted, respected, and embedded within our communities. The exhibition challenges stereotypes by exposing the uncomfortable reality that perpetrators are rarely strangers lurking in the shadows; they are often hidden in plain sight.
In Partnership with the Open University and Reclaim the Agenda
What Where They Wearing?
The Things We Never Said explores the lasting impact of violence through the words victims often feel unable to speak. Each extract is from a victim's impact statement with the thoughts, emotions, and truths that frequently remain unspoken because of fear, shame, trauma, or the limitations of legal and social processes. They reveal the truth of what they have carried for years.
Presented during the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, these exhibitions invite visitors to reflect on responsibility, silence, and the enduring consequences of violence. They encourage empathy, challenge assumptions, and create space for meaningful public conversation about victim-survivor experiences, accountability, and societal change.
Ruth Maxwell is the creator and curator of Not Consent, In Plain Sight and The Things We Never Said, exhibitions that challenge attitudes towards sexual and gender-based violence.
Her work brings attention to the experiences of victims and survivors, challenges the stereotypes surrounding perpetrators and exposes the lasting impact of violence.
First exhibited in Belfast in 2019, Not Consent marked the beginning of Ruth's exhibition work. Her latest exhibitions, In Plain Sight: What Was He Wearing? and The Things We Never Said, continue that work, challenging audiences to question where responsibility lies and to recognise the voices and experiences too often overlooked.
Dr Sophie Doherty is a lecturer of Law at the Open University who specialises in Feminism, Justice and the Arts.
Dr Sophie Doherty (she/her) is an award-winning lecturer and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Sophie is a Lecturer in Law (Central Academic) at The Open University (OU). Prior to joining the OU, Sophie held positions at Dublin City University, and tutored on various modules at Queen's University Belfast, and Durham University. She has presented at academic conferences and guest lectured, nationally and internationally, on her research.
Sophie's research is primarily focused on the areas, and intersections, of sexual violence, justice, law and art. She is also involved in multiple networks and research clusters, reflecting her varied research interests.
