A ‘Move Your Skin’ mobile exhibit, unveiled by Venus ambassador Lotte Wubben-Moy, features striking images of how real women’s skin moves during sport.
The touring exhibit extends the reach of Venus’ in-school module – Validate It – created and delivered in partnership with education charity and youth brand, Football Beyond Borders, girls’ programme in London and Manchester.
The next leg of the tour will be situated at Moss Side Millenium Powerhouse between 27th – 28th July, and open between 9am – 9pm daily.
On a mission to encourage greater participation in sport by women and girls, razor brand Venus launched its ‘Move Your Skin’ exhibition to tackle the skin-conscious barrier women face playing sport.
Originally kicking off in the London cage Lotte grew up playing in, but arriving in Manchester this week, the exhibit proudly displays photographs normalising real skin in sport and tells powerful, personal skin-stories of real women who have overcome skin-consciousness in their own lives. It also includes behind-the-scenes photos of Venus’ #MoveYourSkin ambassador Lotte Wubben-Moy, Arsenal WFC and international women’s player.
Installed at Moss Side Millenium Powerhouse, and shot by photographers, Lauren Macabee and Amy Maidment, the exhibition has been inspired by research from Venus that found more than a third* (40%) of Greater Manchester women say they don’t want to participate in sport because they worry about the way their skin looks. However, nearly half (44%)* admit they would feel more confident in their own skin if they were exposed to more relatable images of women playing sport.
According to the findings, other skin confidence concerns for women in Greater Manchester include being overweight (26%), wrinkles (24%) cellulite (21%) and stretch marks (15%) – which are proudly celebrated and showcased within the exhibit.
The exhibition also aims to extend the reach of Venus’ in-school module, Validate It – created and delivered in partnership with (FBB) to networked schools in Manchester. The self-awareness, curriculum-based module explores themes of body image and confidence and has so far reached over 200 young people across London and Manchester. It engages them in conversations about skin-consciousness and helps to provide practical tools to overcome barriers that may limit them from taking part in sport.
Venus launched #MoveYourSkin in 2022, to tackle skin-consciousness as a barrier into sport, as part of its sponsorship of UEFA Women’s EURO 2022. In 2023, Venus wants to empower even more women and girls to move confidently in their own skin, by levelling up its efforts with the #MoveYourSkin exhibition and nationwide media campaign featuring Lotte, ahead of another big summer of women’s sport.
Commenting on the importance of the campaign, Ceylon Andi Hickman, Head of Brand for FBB said:“Empowering the young people we work with to feel more confident in every aspect of their lives is critical to tackling many of the difficulties they encounter, brought about by the society in which they’re growing up in. The last thing you want is a society of girls that don’t feel like they can be unapologetically themselves. It’s brilliant to see the impact the Venus’ #MoveYourSkin campaign has had in just one year via the Validate It module, inspiring over 200 schoolgirls so far. We’re excited to be rolling this out to other cities to help young women around the UK feel represented and ensure they don’t miss out on all the benefits of sport due to feelings of insecurity.”
Commenting on the campaign, Olivia Hughes, Senior Communications Manager for Venus said:“Nothing should hold women and girls back from playing sports and moving their bodies. With another big summer of sports for the women’s game, this is truly about continuing what we started last year when we launched the Venus #MoveYourSkin campaign. As the next leg of the tour, we’re so excited to be showcasing the exhibition at Moss Side Millenium Powerhouse, who do such incredible work supporting young people in achieving their potential. We hope to empower these girls and women across Manchester to move confidently in their own skin on and off the pitch, as we help redefine what real skin in sport looks like.”
Commenting on the significance of exhibition, Lisa Davenport, CEO for Moss Side Millenium Powerhouse said:“We are proud and excited to be hosting this amazing Venus Move Your Skin exhibition here in Moss side at the Powerhouse. Young women need to be empowered and proud of their skin. Our neighbourhood is a rich mix of multicultural vibrancy where everyone is welcome. We celebrate difference and diversity encouraging our young people to be the best they can be.”
The exhibition is taking place at Moss Side Millenium Powerhouse between 27th – 28th July, 9am – 9pm daily.
