'The Appeal of Womanhood' poster: 1912

The Appeal of Womanhood. We want the vote to stop the white slave traffic'. This pro-suffrage poster was designed by the artist Louise Jacobs for the Suffrage Atelier, a group of artists who used art to promote the Votes for Women campaign. The central figure represents a 'Womanly Woman' standing before a group of women representing a chainmaker, a mother, a laundress and a prostitute. The banner held by the central figure above a skyline showing the Houses of Parliament refers to the social reforms the suffragettes hoped would follow female suffrage. The poster was probably designed as a riposte to Harold Bird's poster entitled 'No Votes Thank You', published for the anti-suffrage meeting at the Albert Hall in February 1912.