'Oppression' Exhibition 2016, Gallery Space.

The gallery space was incredible to work in for Oppression. Serving as a stage for myself and fellow performance artists, the space was perfectly composed to host and celebrate.

'Oppression' Exhibition 2016, Stills. I am.

The composition for the live installation utilised four transparent jars; two filled with identical units of water, and two with identical units of salt. These substances hold infinite meanings, yet to the immediate eye they represent the components of tears; which are not only reflections of pain, but also the ingredients of salt and water are vital components of the human body. Thus, the dislocation of the the jars filled with these components from the body aim to visually reflect both the emotional and physical disjunction of one's self. After each performance, another layer of wool was added to the jars during the binding process, which proved to be aesthetically most interesting to photograph. I was instantly reminded of the patterns of nerves in the body when binding the wool to the jars, which in turn reinforces the concept of physical disjunction.

'Oppression' Exhibition 2016, Stills. I am.

I chose to bind the wrists and the fingers, to visually symbolise numerous concepts and images; the most prominent being the marks of self harm on the skin. The way in which the wool was bound for each performance was spontaneous, however the documented process of the binding holds importance to the concept examined in the piece. I considered binding the ankles and legs, however I felt that it would hold more of a sexual resonance than I wanted to suggest. In addition, the binding of the lower extremities would detract from the symbolism of the hands -  they hold an autonomy which renders the identity of the oppressor in this piece as ambiguous.

'Oppression' Exhibition 2016, Stills. I am.

'Oppression' Exhibition 2016, Raw Footage. I am.

This is a short insight into the binding process in preparation for the performance. Interestingly, members of the audience believed this process to be part of the performance, which added another dimension to the concept being explored - who is the oppressor? Part of the stigma surrounding mental illness is such that the affected individual is believed to hold some responsibility to the development and progression of their illness, which in some way is reflected in the process of self binding in the footage. There are no other forces present in the frame, aside from my own hands. Yet, this is fiercely contrasted against the literary content of the performance; in the process of defining, who is it that is defining?  Shrouded in ambiguity, it would seem as though outside perception has taken the role of oppressor; yet this footage could reveal that perhaps I myself am my own oppressor?

The very process of the camera observing the transformation myself as Francesca into the performer reflects a weird vulnerability. What is the role of the camera during this process? How is the camera implicated in my oppression? For me, the camera holds a symbolism in this particular documentation of footage that it does not in the filming of the performance in its entirety; the camera as the engaged eye.

'Oppression' Exhibition 2016, Filmed Performance Piece with Live Installation. I Am.

I am.

I am

Ask, Don't tell. And in the silence I will find a way, to answer.

I am woman. I am fantasy.  I am here. 

I am free.... I am here....  I am happy....

I am happy... I am free... I am here...

I am here.... I am happy... I am free...

I am strength... I am sound... I am here.

I am free.... I am here....  I am happy....

I am happy... I am free... I am here...

I am here.... I am happy... I am free...

I am  peace... I am perfect ... I am here

I am free.... I am here....  I am happy....

I am happy... I am free... I am here...

I am here.... I am happy... I am free...

I am healthy... I am smiling... I am here

I am free.... I am here....  I am happy....

I am happy... I am free... I am here...

I am here.... I am happy... I am nothing but happy

I am who you say I am.

Italian. - Sono cio' Che to dici che sono         

Russian. skajitye mney, kto ya takaya           

Yoruba. - Mo wa bose sope mowa              

Somali. - Anigu Waxaan ahay waxa aad tiri waxaan ahay

I am what you say I am.

Ask, Don't tell. And in the silence I will find a way, to answer.

As a form of documentation, I decided to have my performance filmed. However, little emphasis was placed on the technicality of the film, as the importance of the live performance was far greater to the concept I was exploring, than recording the content. I am aware that the quality of the sound is rather mute, and so above is the script for the performance piece; the composition of the text holding equal importance to the performance.

'Oppression' Exhibition 2016, Artist Statement. I am.

I am

'I am' is an abstract fusion of conceptual installation and performance art. The piece explores and examines what it is to be young and mentally ill; inspired by the literary material produced by young people whom I helped to support while volunteering with Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services. Within this piece, the stark yet delicate paradox between chaos and order is additionally explored through the live installation, as well as the conceptual framework surrounding the disjunction of emotion from the self. Every aspect of the piece, from the objects used to the clothes worn, the languages spoken and the way the wool is spun, is symbolic of the message carried through, although individual interpretation and projection is absolutely vital to fulfilling the execution of the piece. The decision was made to attach two transparent jars to my wrists using string, each filled separately with water and salt, both of which are attached in turn to the floor by gravity. The superficial and very distant attachment of these elements to the body aims to physically embody emotional disjunction and a disjointed recall of internal division, as well as a strange sense of attachment. In addition, the choice to use wool at the binding material between the flesh and the glass jars carries significant resonance; the spiritual meaning of wool denotes truth from celestial origin which in itself is good. In correspondence with this spiritual meaning, the way in which the wool is so loosely spun awards it a fragile quality; easily detached, which serves to reinforce the literary material.  The languages spoken possibly hold the most significance in this piece, for  the variety of the languages included aims to illustrate a universality the piece, with no specific identity attached to the performer; I as the artist and ultimately the performer stands as a plural, not only as the personal body. Upon saying this, it is integral to this piece that the performance remains as abstract and ambivalent as possible; clarity is not necessary to be sought. The very process of the audience observing this piece is part of the performance itself; serving as the passive onlooker, yet the enagaged eye.

'Oppression' Exhibition 2016, Performance Piece.

On the 26th & 27th of February 2016, I exhibited a piece of performance art combined with live installation at an exhibition held in Norwich entitled, Oppression. My piece was one of fifteen to be selected in a regional competition, and thus became a featured artist in Oppression, which is due to tour at a later date in London. The competition was advertised to the public with nothing more than the word 'Oppression' as a stimulus for artworks; the work selected and collated for the exhibition serving as an immersive and powerful statement on what it is to be oppressed from the perspectives of several artists. Oppression was  exhibited across two days, receiving an extraordinary turn out. The nature of the work exhibited was beautifully diverse; the variation in discipline and compilation not only served as an absolute reflection of the complexity and ambiguity to the concept of oppression, but also was a celebration of the very unapologetic examination of individual experiences of oppression from the Fine Art perspective. The experience of exhibiting my work at this exhibition was invaluable; this being my first exhibition since graduating from Art School with a Foundation Diploma, it has set the pace for my participation in future exhibitions and has assisted in helping me to network with other artists in my region. 

I would like to thank Artistic Director and Organiser Molly Rose Curran, without whom this would never have been possible, as well as her Artistic team.

An Examination of Neo Colonialism in Humanitarian Communication

                                                   'Help Starving African Children.'

                                          -Save the Children. Live on Website; 2016.

                                                    Region of focus; South Sudan 

 http://www.savethechildren.org/site/c.8rKLIXMGIpI4E/b.8197811/k.31C7/Helping_Starving_African_Children.htm

                                 'What do our students know about famine in the Horn of Africa?'

                                                 - Oxfam Australia. Live on Website; 2016
                                                   Region of focus; 'The Horn of Africa.'

https://www.oxfam.org.au/2011/08/what-do-our-students-know-about-the-famine-in-the-horn-of-africa/

The photographic images above reveal another reality aside from acute poverty; a reality which sees the era of neo colonial rule harnessed by global and regional institutions alike. In order to shed light on this reality, we must embark on an unapologetic examination on the role and nature of these images within the mainstream NGO sector they have been elected to represent.

While utilized by differing organisations, Oxfam and Save the Children, both photographic images adopt the same regional focus of Eastern Africa. Yet, while one image is identified generally from  South Sudan, the other is simply identified as 'The Horn of Africa'- a reference to the East African region in its entirety of 6 countries. Thus, the treatment of the subjects featured within each photographic image corresponds with the conceptual ideology of Orientalism; why distinguish between African regions anyway? In his academic text Orientalism (1978), Said argues that the failure to distinguish among countries and differing cultures of a region reinforced an exercise of Western colonial power over the former colonised. Perhaps a comparison can be made between Said's examination of the 'Oriental' Middle East, Far East and Near East, and the contemporary treatment of the 'Dark Continent' as reflected in these images? Moreover, while the role of the inclusion of these images in their relative relief campaigns is to encourage sympathy and thus financial support, the notion of identity is brought into question. The discourse surrounding the concept of 'The West and the Rest', as explored by Stuart Hall (1992), has the resulting outcome of the 'othering' of all beings outside of 'Western' discourse. If discourse is indeed about the production of knowledge through language (Hall, 1992), then these photographic images above are reflective of implications of power operations; this conceptual notion of 'othering' is ever prominent within strategies of humanitarian communication employed by mainstream news media and particularly NGOs,  not confined to a single region, but rather a very universal depiction of the suffering 'other' in the regions that make up the Global South. But it's the truth being shown, right?

The concept of the 'Pornography of Poverty' is most prominent in these images, laden with symbolic inequalities that reinforce post colonial perceptions of cultural superiority. In both images, only the most vulnerable groups are utilized, which is highly representative of the treatment of different regions across the African continent by mainstream news media and the NGO sector. While there is no denying the fact that the realities are very real, filtering information to create a bias reinforces the discourse of the 'West and the Rest.' Through the use of such images, the African continent has come to symbolise poverty; 'flooded with images of the emaciated child.' (Mahadeo & Mckinney, 2007) This contribution to 'othering' through the graphic depictions of human suffering is a sharp reminder  that these images do not represent an encounter between equals (Hall, 1992).  Instead, these images ‘help to legitimise the foundational idea of all western-based development – that the global south is inevitably better off with ongoing interventions than it would be without them’ (Manzo 2008: 652).

But is it all bad? In the last decade, there has been a marked shift has been away from the use of such imagery towards other strategies of humanitarian communication such as Positivism, and the use of comedy as a vehicle to promote awareness of development campaigns.  Organisations such as Build Africa directs all work away from aid relief and towards long-term development through community empowerment, which in turn has a definite impact on the nature of the strategies employed when promoting media publicity and awareness;  particularly an absence of a Western influence on screen and the emphasis on community involvement. Moreover, comedy is now used as a means of combating donor fatigue  and revealing the controversy behind other such campaign strategies. A prime example being Comic Relief's African Appeal sketch in 2007 lead by Ricky Gervais, which encouraged 'us' to elicit self reflection on 'our' involvement in 'othering' distant suffering (Chouliaraki, 2013). However, these methods of communication are not without their flaws; in both distances, the 'other' remains a subject of generosity of the West, which ensures that the discourse of power remains prevalent through tokenism. Will an antidote to donor fatigue be found? Will there be a reversion back to the use of colonial suffering?

Word Count: 763

Bibliography 

Chouliaraki, L. (2013). The Ironic Spectator: Solidarity in the Age of Post Humanitarianism. Cambridge Press.

Hall, S. (1992). The Formations of Modernity. Polity Press.

Mahadeo, M., & Mckinney, J. (2007). Media representations of Africa: Still the Same Old Story? Centre of Global Education .

 Manzo, K. (2008). Imaging Humanitarianism: NGO Identity and the Iconography of Childhood. Antipode.

Said, E. (1978). Orientalism. Penguin Press.

http://www.build-africa.org/ - Build Africa