Country Lesbians: The Story of the WomanShare Collective – Exhibition – Guided Tours – Conference

Location (of the exhibition): SB34 concorde- Rue de la Concorde, 16, 1050 Brussels.

Exhibition: until the 29th of Novembre 2025 – Open on Friday and Saturday 14:00 – 18:00

Guided Tours of the exhibition graciously offered by L-Tour (given by Marian Lens):
Friday 7 November: 16:00 – 18:00 / EN
Saturday 8 November:  14:00 – 16:00 / FR
Friday 14 November: 16:00 – 18:00 / EN
Friday 21 November: 16:00 – 18:00 / NL
Saturday 22 November:  14:00 – 16:00 / EN
Friday 28 November: 16:00 – 18:00 / FR
Registration: info@l-tour.be.

Conference : Thursday 20.11.2025  (18:00 – 20:30) – for details see further in the agenda.
Closing ceremony of the exhibition on 29.11.2025 (18:00 – 21:00).

First presented in the fall of 2024 at Shmorévaz — an independent exhibition space based in Paris — Country Lesbians is now shown at SB34 concorde for its first presentation in Belgium. For this Ixelles chapter, the WomanShare archives are brought into dialogue with the Fonds Marian Lens / Artemys, offering a glimpse into the international reception of Oregon’s lesbian communities.

The exhibition is curated by Joséphine Wagnier, Salomé Burstein, Agathe Cotte and Louise Toth, and is based on the eponymous publication written by the WomanShare Collective in 1976,
featuring personal archives and original works by Carol Newhouse, with reviews and books coming from the Brussels-based archives of the Fonds Marian Lens / Artemys.

In the summer of 1973, Billie, Carol, and Dian sought to escape the patriarchal, male-dominated culture of the big city and set out on a road trip. Driven by a desire to return to the land and the belief that women must find new ways of living together, they left Montreal and headed west, driving across the United States all the way to southern Oregon. The independence and isolation they found in rural life allowed them to affirm themselves as feminists and lesbians. In 1974, they purchased land and founded WomanShare, a separatist community where they lived, built, farmed, and wrote autonomously. Taking its title from a 1976 book co-authored by members of the collective, the exhibition Country Lesbians: The Story of the Womanshare Collective traces this history.

For the exhibition and the conference with the support of: Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles – COCOF – Loterie Nationale – Commune d’Ixelles – Région Bruxelles-Capitale / Images de Bruxelles.