A Yellow Rose Project Interview with Meg Griffiths
Posted on
The Griffin Museum of Photography is honored to present A Yellow Rose Project, a photographic collaboration of responses, reflections, and reactions to the 19th Amendment from over one hundred women across the United States. This traveling exhibition is on view at the Griffin’s Winchester galleries from October 2nd through November 30th, 2025. We had an opportunity to chat with co-curator and artist Meg Griffiths, and her responses are as follows.
Portrait of Meg Griffiths. Courtesy of the Artist
Meg Griffiths (b. 1980) in Indiana and raised in Texas. She received Bachelor of Arts degrees from the University of Texas in Cultural Anthropology and English Literature and earned her Master of Fine Arts in Photography from Savannah College of Art and Design. She currently lives in Denton, Texas where she is an Assistant Professor of Photography in the Department of Visual Art at Texas Woman’s University.
Meg’s photographic research currently deals with domestic, economic, historical and cultural relationships across the Southern United States and Cuba. Her work has travelled nationally as well as internationally, and is placed in collections such as Center for Creative Photography, Capitol One Collection, and the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, and Center for Fine Art Photography.
Her book projects, both monographs as well as collaborative projects have been acquired by various institutions around the country such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Duke University Libraries, Museum of Modern Art, University of Virginia, University of Iowa, Clemson, Maryland Institute College of Art, Ringling College of Art, and Washington and Lee University, to name a few.
She was honored as one of PDN 30’s : New and Emerging Photographers in 2012, named one of eight Emerging Photographers at Blue Spiral Gallery in 2015, Atlanta Celebrates Photography’s Ones to Watch in 2016, was awarded the Julia Margaret Cameron for Best Fine Art Series in 2017 and awarded the 2nd Place Prize at PhotoNola in 2019.
She is represented by Photographs Do Not Bend in Dallas, TX and Candela Books + Gallery in Richmond, VA.
Allison Huang: What initially inspired both you and your co-curator, Frances Jakubek, to co-found A Yellow Rose Project?
Meg Griffiths: Honestly, for my part, I was inspired by the mission of Texas Woman’s University, the nation’s largest public university primarily for women. It is a place where you are surrounded by women working and collaborating together. Where the goal is to support and empower each person to use their voices through their chosen fields. It is an incredibly special university. I always knew I wanted to do something larger than myself and collaborate with women to make photographic work. However, it was not until I met Frances that I knew who I wanted to generate and launch this project with. We knew the centennial of the 19th Amendment was coming up and we thought this would be the perfect charge for women to make work in response, reflection and reaction to.
AH: How has your understanding of the 19th Amendment and the intersection of art and activism changed throughout the process of curating the work of all these women photographers for this exhibition?
MG: Art and more specifically photography is such a powerful way to engage people. To create an opportunity for viewers to encounter what is happening in the world. It also has a lasting way of connecting us to key moments in history. It is the photograph that we use to reflect, respond and react to culture and politics. Many of those images stick with us. I believe the work in this project will too. We thoughtfully considered all the images submitted for the project, all of which were accepted and are housed on our website, and we chose images for the exhibition and for the book that showed the full scope of those thoughts by women in the U.S. concerning this moment in time
What I learned from looking through all the submissions, was just how varied the responses to this call could be. These artists went to places my mind would never have gone. This is exactly what we wanted. We chose to work with women of all ages, stages in their careers, as well as cultural backgrounds. We wanted a kaleidoscope of viewpoints. Each artist also chose to express those ideas through various modes of research, genres and material choices. As Lisa Volpe writes in the introduction of our book, “each stands as a yellow rose.” Each of the submissions is unique. It has been a complete delight to revisit the work every time there is a show. Each show sequenced and presented differently to create a new conversation. There are many layers of meaning here and those keep changing over time.
AH: In your still life images, you discuss how your work draws upon the written accounts of suffragists from the 1920s and your own personal history. Is there a specific still life that resonates with you the most?
MG: In doing research to make work for this project I came across one story that struck me, and as such, was the inspiration for the photograph I constructed entitled, Ethel Byrne, 185 hours, 1917. It references an experience had by a political prisoner during the movement. Ethel Byrne was a suffragist, Irish-American, nurse, sister to Margaret Sanger and one of the three Mother’s of what is known as Planned Parenthood. She was arrested in 1917 for distributing pamphlets on birth control and sentenced to jail for 30 days at Blackwell Island workhouse in New York City. Advocating for the legalization of birth control Byrne went on a hunger strike for 185 days. Authorities quickly put a stop to it and Ethel Byrne became the first woman force fed in the United States. Raw eggs were commonly used as food to push protein into the body, usually through a tube down the throat or the nose. If you go online and search you will find a few photos and illustrations of women being held down by several people, many women, while a man pushes food down her throat. By no means was this one of the worst things to happen to a woman fighting for reproductive rights in history, but it was upsetting to say the least. Often women were given flowers and pins when they were released, a show of care and respect for the time earned in prison for the cause. The story resonated with me as my ancestors came from Ireland in the early 1900’s. Many pioneers of the suffrage movement were immigrants too. I also felt drawn to make work around this topic as so many women, including myself, have benefitted from the support and care that Planned Parenthood has given women through the years. This photo was generated as an homage to this remarkable woman and to all the immigrant women in history who bore great sacrifice for the greater whole.
AH: Previously, A Yellow Rose Project was exhibited at Texas Woman’s University in November 2020 and again with all 105 images in August of 2025. What did it mean to you to show this work in Texas — both as your home institution and a place where the yellow rose carries additional cultural significance?
MG: There are a number of reasons that it has and still means a lot to show the work in Texas. For one, it is my home state, I grew up here, came of age to vote here, and now live, raise a child and teach here. Like I mentioned before, Texas Woman’s is a unique school, not only predominantly for women, however the student body is incredibly diverse. Having the work here for this student body, alumni, faculty and staff to engage with this work nowhas meant so much to me and to them. Beyond this, it is a state where I feel literally all the policies and laws that have been made affect every aspect of my life as well as the lives of those around me. For this reason, I actively vote and stay involved. I have always said that creating and touring this project is activism for me. It is a way to remind us all that rights, once hard fought, are not to be taken for granted. It is through the act of standing up and showing up, in that long tradition of women before us, that we must participate and have the tough conversations, and make the choice to voice our truths, either through the photograph or the ballot box.
We are aware of the similarity in the name between The Yellow Rose of Texas, the song as well as the woman given the name for her role in the Battle at San Jacinto between General Santa Anna and Sam Houston. We have been asked if there is any overlap in why we chose to name this project A Yellow Rose Project with The Yellow Rose of Texas, however there is no connection for us. The name we placed upon the project is solely derived from the yellow rose as one of the suffrage symbols across all states and the roses women and men wore at the Tennessee State House back in August 20, 1920. The yellow rose being the pro-suffrage symbol and the red rose the anti-suffrage one.
AH: Following up on the next question, how does the project magnify, challenge, or illuminate specific issues to this region?
MG: There are only a handful of artists in the project that are from Texas, and of those, many are not making work about the issues we are facing here specifically. However we here in Texas have experienced major injustices and inequalities. There are policies that have been created to hinder voting, women’s issues, lgbtqia+ rights and gender affirming care, educational freedoms as well as immigration rights. There are a number of artists in this project as a whole speaking to these issues being faced, to some degree, in all states across the U.S.. I do believe that those images magnify these particular human rights struggles.
AH: What parallels do you see between the suffragists’ fight for voting rights and the challenges women and marginalized communities are still confronting in 2025?
MG: There are many parallels. The suffrage movement and today’s issues include the ongoing fight against voter suppression as well as the failure to recognize the rights of women of color, which is still persistent today. We had discriminatory laws such as poll taxes, literacy tests, and grandfather clauses to keep them from voting. We have modern day versions of this. A weakened Voting Rights Act of 1965, redistricting, ending mail in ballots, and laws such as the SAVE Act which recently passed the House. Beyond this though, this discrimination affects the ability to participate in making choices on how to protect other freedoms, such as reproductive rights, economic justice, pay equity, protection against violence, child education, and safety for lgbtqia+ communities, families and children. Not to mention the weaponization of the military against its own people and in particular marginalized communities.
AH: What do you hope audiences, especially younger generations, take away from this show, and how do you see the role of art in remembering our shared history and inspiring activism today?
MG: My hope is that it engages and incites young people. Yes, we have come so far. Let’s not forget that it was not that long ago a woman could not own a house, a credit card, or get a loan. However, that pendulum of progress, for however far it has swung forward, is moving quickly in the opposite direction. So I hope it educates, creates conversation, community, and hopefully action. I want young audiences to find their own place in history as it is being written right now!
Interview by Allison Huang, Curation and Exhibitions Admin Intern
Allison Huang is the Curation and Exhibitions Admin Intern from White Plains, New York. She recently graduated from Boston University with a B.A. in History of Art and Architecture and Biology, along with a minor in Visual Arts. With a passion for storytelling and audience engagement, she is dedicated to collaborating with artists to expand their creative potential while fostering more inclusive and dynamic artistic spaces. Her research interests include the work of lesser-known artists, the representation of marginalized communities in art, and issues of repatriation. In her creative practice, she works primarily with analog photography and oil painting.
Welcome we are excited to have you and your creativity seen by so many.
1: Log into your membership account 2: To create a profile you must be logged in and be a supporter or above otherwise you will not see the add a profile button. 3: You can find the Griffin Salon on the Members Drop down in our Main Navigation on the home page or by starting here – https://griffinmuseum.org/griffin-salon/ 4: A button that says Create Your Member Profile appears 5: If you are logged in and have already created a profile you also won’t see the add a profile button ( the button launches the form) but you will see an edit and delete icon next to your name and only yours.
6. Fill in your Artist Statement, Bio and upload up to 10 images. NOTESharing your contact information is in your hands. You can select to make your phone and email public or keep it private.
Once you have updated your information, it sends a ping to museum staff to approve the images and text, and your page will then be listed on the public website. The museum reserves the right to refuse content that is offensive, harmful, or divisive. Images that include graphic, explicit, or politically divisive content will not be approved. Please ensure all submitted images and text are appropriate for a public audience.
Member Directory
Form for adding and editing members to the member directory
Amy Rindskopf's Terra Novus
At the market, I pick each one up, pulled in by the shapes as they sit together, waiting. I feel its heft in my hand, enjoy the textures of the skin or peel, and begin to look closer and closer. The patterns on each individual surface marks them as distinct. I push further still, discovering territory unseen by the casual observer, a new land. I am like a satellite orbiting a distant planet, taking the first-ever images of this newly envisioned place.
This project started as an homage to Edward Weston’s Pepper No. 30 (I am, ironically, allergic to peppers). As I looked for my subject matter at the market, I found that I wasn’t drawn to just one single fruit or vegetable. There were so many choices, appealing to both hand and eye. I decided to print in black and white to help make the images visually more about the shapes, and not about guessing which fruit is smoothest, which vegetable is greenest.
Artistic Purpose/Intent
Artistic Purpose/Intent
Tricia Gahagan
Photography has been paramount in my personal path of healing from disease and
connecting with consciousness. The intention of my work is to overcome the limits of the
mind and engage the spirit. Like a Zen koan, my images are paradoxes hidden in plain
sight. They are intended to be sat with meditatively, eventually revealing greater truths
about the world and about one’s self.
John Chervinsky’s photography is a testament to pensive work without simple answers;
it connects by encouraging discovery and altering perspectives. I see this scholarship
as a potential to continue his legacy and evolve the boundaries of how photography can
explore the human condition.
Growing my artistic skill and voice as an emerging photographer is critical, I see this as
a rare opportunity to strengthen my foundation and transition towards an established
and influential future. I am thirsty to engage viewers and provide a transformative
experience through my work. I have been honing my current project and building a plan
for its complete execution. The incredible Griffin community of mentors and the
generous funds would be instrumental for its development. I deeply recognize the
hallmark moment this could be for the introduction of the work. Thank you for providing
this incredible opportunity for budding visions and artists that know they have something
