In On Rape and Institutional Failure, an exhibition centered on the second chapter of her ongoing project A History of Misogyny, Laia Abril examines different forms of violence against women throughout history.
Weaving together images, compiled testimonies, archival materials, select objects, and installations with sound and video, the exhibition investigates how gender-based stereotypes, coupled with worldwide prejudices and misconceptions, have contributed to a systemic rape culture that persists today.
By focusing on institutions, Abril aims to avoid narratives of victim-blaming, instead addressing the on-going problem of social accountability that has allowed offenders and enablers alike to avoid justice. On Rape and Institutional Failure was first exhibited in 2020 in the wake of the initial, galvanizing allegations against Harvey Weinstein and other powerful men. While #MeToo has led to few sustained consequences and little systemic change, Abril offers a meaningful opportunity to address the long history of silencing victims and the transgenerational trauma that has developed as a result.
About Laia Abril:
Laia Abril (b. 1986) is a research-based artist working across photography, text, video, and sound, focusing on biopolitics and gender issues. Her work is rooted in a politically engaged, process-driven methodology that employs strategies of forensic aesthetics and counter-narratives, interrogating dominant histories and the politics of representation.
Her work has been exhibited in over 25 countries and is held in collections such as Centre Pompidou, Photo Elysée, Fotomuseum Winterthur, MACBA, Reina Sofía, MNAC, and the V&A Museum. She has authored acclaimed books, including The Epilogue, Lobismuller, and the A History of Misogyny series: On Abortion, On Rape, and On Mass Hysteria.
She has received the Foam Paul Huf Award (Amsterdam), RPS Hood Medal (London), Aperture Best Book Award (NY/Paris), and Spain’s National Photography Award. Based in Switzerland, she is CONFIDENTIAL Last Updated: June 29, 2026
About Curator:
Sara Ickow is the Associate Director of Exhibitions at the International Center of Photography, where she has been a curator on exhibitions including Gillian Laub: Family Matters, ICP at 50: From the Collection 1845–2019, To Conjure: New Archives in Recent Photography, and Photobooks USA 2000–25. She is also the Managing Director for Women Photograph and co-editor of the book Women Photograph: What We See. Previously, she worked as Curatorial Assistant and Collections Manager at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery. Sara holds an MA in Art History from NYU’s Institute of Fine Arts.
Header Image: Laia Abril, Ala Kachuu (Bride Kidnapping), Kyrgyzstan, 2019 © Laia Abril, Courtesy Galerie Les filles du calvaire, Paris; Laia Abril, Church Rape, Argentina, 2019 © Laia Abril, Courtesy Galerie Les filles du calvaire, Paris; Laia Abril, Military rape, US, 2019 © Laia Abril, Courtesy Galerie Les filles du calvaire, Paris
Special Thanks
Lead support is provided by Monika and Deven Parekh and the Women Moving Millions Art Catalyst Matching Fund. Additional support is provided by the Anne Levy Charitable Trust, the Murthy Nayak Foundation, and the Institut Ramon Llull.
Exhibitions at ICP are supported, in part, by Michael Clinton, Caryl Englander, Renee Harbers Liddell, Almudena Legorreta, Jessica Nagle, Ken Nicholson, Jeffrey Rosen, the ICP Board of Trustees, the Blanchette Hooker Rockefeller Fund, and public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.
