Nancy Willis
Willis is a British multimedia artist who is London-based and explores themes of love, human vulnerability, and loss from her own experience as a disabled woman. She was born in 1953. (LARGE PRINT GUIDE, 2023)
Biography
Nancys processes include painting, printmaking, sculpture, mixed media, animation, and film. She has been exhibiting since the early 1980s. Her work is recognised within the disability arts movement and has been exhibited in venues like, Women in Revolt! – Art and Activism 1970–1990, Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood (Arnolfini, Bristol 2024) in the section on baby‑loss / involuntary motherhood. (nancywillisartist, 2023)
Early life and education
Nancy is a disabled artist who was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. (Churchtimes, 2025). This significantly impacted her mobility die to the rare genetic condition causing muscle weakness that gets worse over time. (Tate). Nancy was encouraged to attend Art College at North East London Polytechnic after finishing her education at a residential ‘special’ school. (National disability, self portrait). From 1972-2011 she trained and gained qualifications in a variety of colleges and universities. (Nancywillis, 2025)
After graduation she trained further as a teacher and workshop leader. The Disability Arts Movement was able to help and provide a supportive environment for her to develop her artwork. (National Disability Arts).
A Self Portrait with Lost Baby 1988
Backstory
These important self-portraits were exhibited at Women in Revolt! – Art and Activism and Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood. It is displayed alongside a little bronze sculpture of a tiny baby ‘Rosie’ (Tate). They reflect the grief Nancy Willis experienced after doctors told her in the early 1970’s that she would die young due to her disability, after finding out she fell pregnant she chose to terminate her pregnancy in the belief that she would not live long enough to care for her child. She was, at the same time, sterilised. A decade later, she received a new prognosis and longer life expectancy, but the sterilisation was irreversible. (Trigg, D).
Printing & painting techniques
Initially, Willis used etching to create this piece - a printmaking technique where you scratch a design into a metal plate, use acid to create grooves, and print it onto paper. (Metmuseum, 2018)
Title approach
The title ‘Self-portrait with lost baby’ in the category of work ‘Losing a voice’ symbolises that due to losing the opportunity to have a child makes her feel voiceless. (Nancywillisartist).
Analysis
‘It’s important that these pieces are shown next to each other. Together they create an expression of this terrible feeling of loss.’ (Tate). Her work reflects the pain of having the right taken away from her because of misunderstandings about her disability. Her work is heart-wrenching, and touches on a subject that is referred to by many women – women’s rights about choice over our bodies. (Baharier, M 2024).
These pieces of work tell stories from a time when disabled people were not seen. (Tate.). The pain and grief of these drawings is obvious, showing comforting arms wrapped around her distressed face. (Trigg, D). By showing us these etchings, it can be agonising to see but is very vital to witness so we understand Willis’ experience of loss a lot more. (Williamson, B).
The lack of mainstream disabled artists
The issue isn’t the number of disabled artists—it’s their visibility. You may know a few well-known artists like Frida Kahlo, but disabled artists face more barriers than non-disabled as nondisabled artists are focussed on in galleries and art institutions. It has been an ongoing situation over years. (Disability Arts online, 2025)
Mark Quinn
In 2005, Mark Quinn created the sculpture Alison Lapper pregnant. (Quinn, M). Alison Lapper, an artist born with phocomelia, a condition causing absence or severe underdevelopment of limbs. (Brighton & Hove). While the sculpture brings visibility to the disabled artist, it was created by a nondisabled artist which highlights the under representation of disabled creators. Disabled people are often subjects of art rather than the ones making art, at least this is what's shown mainstream.
Disabled people also face barriers in taking part in mainstream art. Mat Fraser, a disabled actor, explained his experience in the RDR project: “Then, reality bit my ass… I realised that I was just NOT going to get mainstream stage work,” (RDR 2025). This shows that people are more likely listen to the outside perspective of disabilities rather than the inside perspective.
Challenges and controversy
Negative responses
Despite progress for disabled artists and disabled people in general, there is always individuals in society who have negative views. Responses to the statue were negative, exclaiming it was “vulgar” and “‘disgusting.” Even when she had her child, the responses were still ongoing- “I got accused of sexually abusing Parys, because I washed him with my feet.” (Wallis, 2024). Not only can disabled artists experience discrimination and backlash but also medical challenges- like Nancy Willis. However, Nancy is still determined, “As long as there is any movement in my body, I will find a way to make art,” especially when it comes to her art. (Morgan, S 2024)
The Fight for Disability Rights
Timeline
Before the 20th century, disabled people were almost never represented in culture or everyday life, shown only in medical settings, charity campaigns, or as objects of pity and curiosity. (Lawrie, E. 2020). Many were excluded or institutionalized.
From the 1950s to the 1980s, activism and the disability rights movement began to challenge these ideas, arguing that social barriers (not disability itself) caused exclusion. (Quick guide). Groups like the Union of the Physically Impaired Against Segregation- established in 1972- helped change public attitudes and pushed for more inclusive design and accessibility laws. (RDR, 2025)
From the late 1900s to today, representation has become more visible in media, art, and design. Laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006) promoted equality and inclusion. (ADA National).
Helping the change
In 1976, an organisation ‘Shape’ was founded to improve access to culture for disabled people by offering opportunities for disabled creatives, training institutions to be more inclusive to disabled people, and running participatory arts and development programmes. (Shape Arts).
In 2018, Caterina Bianchini created five campaign posters in Crack magazines 88th issue to raise awareness about the 8th amendment in Ireland, and to fight for reproductive rights. (Yeung, 2025). Both Caterina's posters and Nancy Willis' experience shows how women's reproductive rights have been denied whether they are disabled or non-disabled. It shows us the struggles women face when it comes to reproductive autonomy.
Unlimited, founded in 2013, is a commissioning programme that supports disabled artists. Offering them opportunities to showcase their work at Edinburgh festival fringe and other big events. They have awarded over £7,100,000 to support 538 artists, reaching audiences of over 9,000,000. By doing this, it gives these disabled creators the recognition they deserve. (Unlimited, 2024).
Despite progress, disabled people continue to fight for basic rights and recognition. Negative reactions to work like Alison Lapper’s statue and the challenges Nancy wills faced due to sterilisation still reflect the ongoing biases society holds towards disability as well the physical challenges.
‘This man saw my body as a problem because it’s not normal. This surfaces two questions: When did challenging the norm become a problem? And what does it mean to be normal to begin with?’ – Extra Bold (Lupton, 2021)
Bibliography
ADA National Network (n.d.). What is the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)? [online] ADA National Network. Available at: https://adata.org/learn-about-ada
Baharier, M (2024). Nancy Willis talks about some of her more personal artwork, on show in Women in Revolt! Art and Activism - Disability Arts Online. [online] Available at: https://disabilityarts.online/magazine/interviews/nancy-willis-talks-about-some-of-her-more-personal-artwork-on-show-in-women-in-revolt-art-and-activism/
Brighton & Hove Museums. (n.d.). Alison Lapper, MBE, artist. [online] Available at: https://brightonmuseums.org.uk/discovery/history-stories/alison-lapper-mbe-artist/
Churchtimes.co.uk. (2025). From activist to artist: Nancy Willis on the search for self-expression. [online] Available at: https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2025/6-june/features/features/from-activist-to-artist-nancy-willis-on-the-search-for-self-expression [Accessed 27 Nov. 2025].
Disability Arts online (2025) News - New research explores non-disabled and metropolitan bias of major arts prizes. Available at:
Lupton, E. et al. (2021) Extra bold: a feminist inclusive anti-racist nonbinary field guide for graphic designers. First edition. Hudson, New York: Princeton Architectural Press. ProQuest Ebook Central - Reader
LARGE PRINT GUIDE. (2023). Available at: https://www.tate.org.uk/documents/1882/TBEXH_0072_Women_In_Revolt_LargePrintGuide_WEB_AW_.pdf.
Lawrie, E. (2020). Was 1995 the year that changed everything for disabled people? BBC News. [online] 7 Nov. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/explainers-54823810.
Morgan, S (2024). Thought for the Week - Conversations with Nancy Willis - St James’s Church Piccadilly. [online] St James’s Church Piccadilly. Available at: https://www.sjp.org.uk/thought-for-the-week-conversations-with-nancy-willis/.
Metmuseum.org. (2018). Etching. [online] Available at: https://www.metmuseum.org/perspectives/materials-and-techniques-printmaking-etching.
nancywillisartist. (2023). nancywillisartist. [online] Available at: https://www.nancywillis.co.uk
Nancywillis.co.uk. (2025). School Manager by Family Zone. [online] Available at: https://www.nancywillis.co.uk/training-and-qualifications [Accessed 26 Nov. 2025].
nancywillisartist. (n.d.). Finding a voice. [online] Available at: https://www.nancywillis.co.uk/finding-a-voice
National Disability Arts Collection & Archive. (n.d.). Self Portrait 1, pastel on Ingres paper by Nancy Willis. [online] Available at: https://the-ndaca.org/resources/audio-described-gallery/self-portrait-1-pastel-on-ingres-paper-by-nancy-willis/
National Disability Arts Collection & Archive. (n.d.). Nancy Willis. [online] Available at: https://the-ndaca.org/the-people/nancy-willis/
Quick guide Disability history. (1944). Available at: https://www.leonardcheshire.org/sites/default/files/2021-04/Quick-guide-Disability-history.pdf
Quinn, M. (n.d.). Alison Lapper Pregnant. [online] marcquinn.com. Available at: http://marcquinn.com/artworks/single/alison-lapper-pregnant
RDR (2025). Available at: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://le.ac.uk/-/media/uol/docs/research-centres/rcmg/publications/rdrsmallest.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwi5uv35yo-RAxUwQUEAHfxWMEkQFnoECBwQAQ&usg=AOvVaw20ZurL8JqMjksT3X3fB6QH [Accessed 26 Nov. 2025].
Shape Arts. (n.d.). About Shape. [online] Available at: https://www.shapearts.org.uk/Listing/Category/about-shape
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Trigg, D. (n.d.). Acts of Creation: On Art and Motherhood. [online] www.studiointernational.com. Available at: https://www.studiointernational.com/index.php/acts-of-creation-on-art-and-motherhood-review-arnolfini-bristol
Ukdhm.org. (2017). Nancy Willis – UK Disability History Month. [online] Available at: https://ukdhm.org/nancy-willis-multimedia-artist/
Unlimited. (2024). Our work. [online] Available at: https://weareunlimited.org.uk/our-work/
Williamson, B. (n.d.). Women in Revolt! Art and Activism in the UK 1970-1990. [online] www.studiointernational.com. Available at: https://www.studiointernational.com/index.php/women-in-revolt-art-and-activism-in-the-uk-1970-1990-review-tate-britain-london.
Wallis, L. (2024). Artist Alison Lapper on the grief of losing her only child. BBC News. [online] 6 Sep. Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cvgdze14xzno
Yeung, V. (2025). Caterina Bianchini designs activist posters calling for voters to #RepealThe8th. [online] Crack Magazine. Available at: https://crackmagazine.net/article/long-reads/caterina-bianchini-designs-activist-posters-calling-for-voters-to-repeal-the-8th/