Black Maternal Health Exhibition

Part of the Diasporic strand of Radical Retrospectives

From 26 September 2025, Collective Encounters will present the Shrine to Granny Marie at the Kuumba Imani Millennium Centre, 4 Princes Road, Liverpool L8 1TH.

This powerful installation revisits and reflects on themes of migration through the lens of Black maternal health. Created in collaboration with Liverpool John Moores University, the work draws a striking connection between historical research into enslaved midwives in the 19th century and the stark, ongoing disparities in maternal mortality and morbidity rates between Black women and women of other racial and ethnic groups today.

The exhibition also features our ‘Hey Mama’ leaflet, designed by Black women, for Black women on maternity wards, offering peer-informed guidance and support. Visitors will have the opportunity to sign up to join our Black Maternal Health Group, which meets to discuss, plan and lead future initiatives and interventions.

Alongside the installation, interactive creative activities will invite everyone to celebrate the achievements of their ancestors and to reflect on the legacies, strengths and qualities passed down to future generations.