Susan Meiselas, Ritu, Room 12, Ruby House, The Haven, Wolverhampton (2016)

This photograph is from A Room of Their Own, a visual narrative combining images, testimony and collages. It was created through a series of collaborative workshops with photographer Susan Meiselas and women of The Haven refuge in Wolverhampton over 2015 and 2016. The project was commissioned by the West Bromwich-based arts organisation Multistory.

Susan Meiselas (b. 1948, Baltimore, Maryland) joined Magnum Photos in 1976 and has worked as a freelance photographer since then. She is known for her documentary work across a range of subjects and relationships over time, in particular her coverage of human rights issues in Latin America.

The photograph featured as part of the Touchstone programme (2012-2020). Each display consisted of a single photographic work on the Eranda studio floor where visitors were invited to respond to the question 'What do you see?' using the cards and pencils provided. A bench was placed in front of the work, encouraging people to spend a little longer than they might usually. The programme was part of a wider series of projects and activities related to visual literacy.

Susan Meseilas later worked with Here Press to produce a small publication, A View of a Room, featuring a selection of people's responses to the photograph when it was displayed as part of the Touchstone programme.