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Seventy7 Pairs of Shoes

Finally, after more than 2 years, The YWCA of Adelaide's Seventy7 Pairs of Shoes exhibition has come to an end. This unique and successful exhibition travelled right across the continent, from Perth to Sydney, with many stops in between. As a feature at both Federation Square in Melbourne and at The Fringe opening night in Adelaide, our important message reached thousands of people.

Seventy7 Pairs of Shoes is an exhibition that tackles the issues of domestic violence through the international language of shoes!

Each year there are 77 intimate partner homicides in Australia .

This act is at the extreme end of a continuum of domestic violence. Cognisant of this figure the YWCA of Adelaide has invited 77 prominent Australians to stand against domestic violence by donating their shoes to create the Seventy 7 Pairs of Shoes exhibition.

Featuring a wide range of shoes once worn by many famous Australians from footballers to First Ladies, authors to athletes and politicians to pop stars - including Portia DeRossi, Missy Higgins, Andrew Denton, Tara Moss , Cathy Freeman, Jeannie Little, Yumi Stynes , Malcolm Fraser, Mark Ricciutto, Liz Ellis, Johanna Griggs, Kirsty Sword Gusmao, Dave Gleeson, Meryl Tankard, Di Morrissey , Ita Buttrose and Senator Natasha Stott Despoja Seventy 7 Pairs of Shoes will be featured in the storefront of Miss Gladys Sym Choon & Emporium 233/235A Rundle Street, Adelaide for a week from Friday 21st October 2005 as part of the YWCA's global Week Without Violence .

Cathy Freeman's Nikes		Senator Natasha Stott Despoja's Doc Martins
Missy Higgins' Converse		Jeannie Little's slippers

Pics: Jennifer Greer Holmes

Seventy 7 Pairs of Shoes was created by the YWCA of Adelaide and funded by the South Australian Office for Women/DFCS Women's Safety Strategy Community Education fund an initiative of Our Commitment to Women's Safety in South Australia.