Bio

Northern born Caroline Cardus is an artist activist in the Disability Arts Movement. Text and narrative is an important part of Cardus’ work, which is often about distilling an idea down to its simplest form. Cardus works collaboratively as well as individually to tell stories of lived experience from disability and feminist perspectives.

Artist Statement 

Cardus was a recipient of the Adam Reynolds Memorial Bursary in 2011, resident at BALTIC in Gateshead, where she charted Disability Rights Activist Barbara Lisicki’s dark journey through the NHS by exchanged text messages, in A Message from Barbara. 

In 2018 and 2019 Cardus worked with Tate Modern, first on the LDN WMN project with Tate Collective, producing a public art installation, Fight On. In 2019 she worked with Tate’s social and curatorial team and Better Bankside on a poster campaign, From The Other Side, producing an image called What Did You Think She Was Gonna Do?

In July 2022 Cardus was part of 30 disabled artists taking part in a nationwide DaDa intervention in galleries called We Are Invisible, We Are Visible (#WAIWAV) funded by DASH Arts. Her intervention, FED UP, was shown at Milton Keynes Gallery.

Cardus also works as a creative producer, advocate and mentor for other artists.

Why MW is important

Magical Women is important because it is artist led and has been built from scratch. Elinor does this by managing illness, chronic conditions and always has space for others. It is an important space in the arts.