Iconic picture is recreated for IWD
SENIOR women leaders at the University of Glasgow have organised their own take on a 150 year old all-male-professor photograph for International Women’s Day.
In 1870, 26 male professors were photographed using the iconic Lion and Unicorn staircase as backdrop when the University moved to the west end of Glasgow.
In 1870, the University’s records show that all the academics were men including its senior leaders, made up of 26 professors. All the University’s 1279 students in 1870 were men – it was another 24 years before the first four women graduated.
One hundred and 50 years on from the anniversary of the move, more than 200 female professors and staff across the university have digitally recreated the same photograph. The senior women leaders hope the 2020 version will help to act as a catalyst for focused reflection, discussion, planning and continued action on the issue of gender equality.
Professor Jill Morrison, Clerk of Senate and Vice-Principal, who is the University’s Gender Equality Champion, said: “Over the 150 years we have been at our current campus in Glasgow’s West End there have been huge changes in the size and make-up of our staff and student body.
“To mark this important 150th anniversary, it was felt it was right to offer a new moment in time in the University’s 569-year history.
“I hope that this photo will inform discussions and reflection on gender equality both on International Women’s Day and throughout the year.”