Conversations in Clay: Gender Identity and Inclusion in Art

CONVERSATIONS IN CLAY: GENDER IDENTITY AND INCLUSION IN ART (April 2022)

Creative Producer Deen Atger and I joined forces to open a safe and honest conversation around concepts of gender identity, art, inclusion and communication.

As a passionate feminist, I strongly believe in the need to keep looking for and giving visibility to all the hidden herstories around us. All the women whose work and life stories have been forgotten as a result of the patriarchal, Western, religious understanding of the world that have dominated us throughout the centuries.

At the same time, as a queer woman, spaces that are so clearly centred around ‘women’ make me wonder about their inclusivity. How welcomed are those who don’t fall in the ruling binary feel? This curiosity led me to organise this session as part of the public programme of ‘Body Vessel Clay: Black Women, Ceramics and Contemporary Art’ at Two Temple Places, of which I am part.

It was neither a lecture, nor a debate. Just a conversation to explore the some tricky concepts and their intersectionality; and the power of art to help us understand, empathise and unite us.
The workshop was ended with an introduction to making with clay!

”It was fascinating to learn about great artists and their stories, often hidden due to the gender, gender identity or race of the maker. It is clear there is a huge amount of diversity, and so much to be learnt from it, that most people will never get to see in traditional settings. Deen and Bisila created a really gentle space of curiosity and interrogation within which to have conversations about these artists and our own identities, whilst exploring clay with our own hands.”
Participant’s feedback