Cynthia Corbett Gallery and Young Masters are delighted to share that Mid-Air (2026), an artwork by Cristina Schek, was selected by Dr Helen Pankhurst CBE for a special Centenary Action card sent to women MPs in the House of Commons.
The selection followed Her Court: The Role Wimbledon Played in the Suffragette Movement, presented by Young Masters in collaboration with Wimbledon Museum from 2–11 July 2026. Schek's first museum-scale mixed-media installation, Her Court, brought together an antique wooden chair, printed velvet, lace portraits, a ceremonial sash and sound to explore women's history, memory and authority. The installation incorporated references to two remarkable women associated with the suffragette movement: Rose Lamartine Yates, whose Holloway Prison brooch is held in Wimbledon Museum's collection, and Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, who lived at Hampton Court Palace.
Three companion photographic works, Before Flight, Mid-Air and After Flight, explore the moments surrounding an act of liberation. In Mid-Air, a woman wearing ballet slippers balances between two Holloway Prison brooches, transformed into a pair of prison gates.
As Schek explains:
“Women have so often had to learn the extraordinary skill of walking their own path with balance, resilience and courage, even when the space beneath them feels uncertain. And it's no accident that she wears ballet slippers, because some journeys require elegance as much as strength.”
On 26 August 2026, Schek joined Dr Helen Pankhurst and the Centenary Action team to sign the parliamentary cards featuring the artwork before their distribution to Westminster.
Mid-Air joins the SYLVIA × Centenary Action auction
Following the parliamentary card initiative, an Artist's Proof of Mid-Air has been specially released and donated to Centenary Action's silent auction, supported by SYLVIA the musical. The fundraising programme includes more than 40 donated artworks and experiences and supports Centenary Action's work towards a diverse, gender-equal Parliament by 2028.
Cristina Schek
Mid-Air, Her Court: Levitation Series, 2026
Archival pigment print
Image: 42 × 29.7 cm
Mounted: 51 × 41 cm
Edition: 3 + 2 Artist's Proofs
Auction lot: One Artist's Proof
Artwork value: £1,500
Opening bid: £700
Auction closes: 15 November 2026, 9:45pm GMT
The work is offered courtesy of Cristina Schek and Cynthia Corbett Gallery / Young Masters.
