The Imperial War Museum (IWM) in London has opened "Unsilenced: Sexual Violence in Conflict," the first major UK museum exhibition to address the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war. Featuring video testimony from journalist Christina Lamb, the show draws on the IWM's collections and new testimonies from survivors, including propaganda posters, photographs by Lee Miller, and a newly acquired miniature Sonyeosang statue. Curators Maeve Underwood and Helen Upcraft re-examined the museum's holdings to uncover hidden narratives of sexual slavery and humiliation from World War II to the Russia-Ukraine war.
This exhibition matters because it confronts a historically neglected war crime at a time when conflict-related sexual violence remains widespread, with the UN documenting hundreds of cases in Ukraine alone since 2022. By using art and visual culture to depict atrocities, the show challenges stereotypes and amplifies survivor voices, filling a critical gap in how museums represent the gendered impacts of war. It underscores the power of visual communication in shaping public understanding of a pervasive but under-discussed aspect of conflict.