Themes & Theories that Inform my Work
I have been interested in freedom, oppression, unity, and separation for most of my life. These ideas define most of my personal experiences and understanding of the world. Through a dedicated commitment to understanding them, I have seen how our social, psychological, and spiritual experiences are all intrinsically linked.
My key themes are:
· Yoga philosophy,
· Intersectional feminism,
· Paulo Freire’s liberation theology.
Yoga Philosophy
Through a series of practices such as meditation, contemplation, self-awareness, physical yoga, breathing techniques and devotional chanting, the wandering mind can trained to be still, so personal suffering is no longer experienced. In the stilling of the mind, Yoga or unity with the true self is experienced, and a state of peace, love and freedom is lived. The mind stands in the way of self-realisation, which allows the authentic self to be experienced. Then, the person is no longer governed by the mind, past experiences, fears, desires and beliefs.
“What most people want is the same. Most people simply want physical and mental health, understanding and wisdom, and peace and freedom. Often our means of pursuing these basic human needs come apart at the seams, as we are pulled by different and often competing demands of human life.” - Iyengar, B.K.S. Light on Life: The Journey to Wholeness, Inner Peace and Ultimate Freedom. Yellow Kite, 2019. (Originally published by Rodale, 2005.)
Key texts for my understanding of Yoga Philosophy are:
Intersectional Feminism
Intersectional Feminism acknowledges that everyone experiences discrimination and oppression. It holds the political belief in the equality of all people and that restorative social policies, laws, organisational change and structural redress are essential to bring about social change and a fairer society.
“I genuinely don’t understand why everyone isn’t a feminist – it’s simply about being treated fairly. It’s the same with race: what is so difficult about all people being treated equally?” - “Sonia Boyce: 30 Years of Art and Activism.” Frieze, 29 May 2018.
Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw, the American civil rights advocate and critical race theorist, coined “Intersectionality” in 1989. Initially, the word was used to describe the double discrimination faced by Black women.
This evolved into the concept that all oppression is linked, that the categories of sexuality, racial identity, gender, disability, and nationality overlap, creating layers of discrimination and disadvantage.
My key texts regarding Intersectional Feminism are:
Paulo Freire’s Liberation Theology
In 1968, Paulo Freire, an influential philosopher of education, wrote Pedagogy of the Oppressed, explaining how the oppressed can liberate themselves. Freire believed in equality and empowering others. He understood that people in poverty struggle to know how they are oppressed by beliefs and myths that don’t serve them and keep them trapped in poverty. He wrote about assisting the oppressed to deconstruct beliefs and myths through dialogue, raising their awareness of the oppression's implications; this he coined “conscientisation”. With this new perception, the oppressed could collectively take action to bring about change for the better.
Paulo Freire texts that inform my work are:
While my work is informed by and can be understood through these theories and themes, I feel Eva Hesse’s exclamation to Cindy Hemser in 1970 explains it more truthfully:
“I don’t value the totality of the image on these abstract or aesthetic points. For me, it is a total image that has to do with me and my life.” - Lippard, Lucy R. Eva Hesse. N.Y University Press, 1976.
This articulates the complete integration between art and life and became the major epistemological and aesthetic force of feminist art in the 1970s.
References
Ahmed, Sara. The Feminist Killjoy Handbook. Penguin Random House UK, 2024.
Byrom, Thomas. The Heart of Awareness: A Translation of the Ashtavakra Gita. Shambhala Publications Inc, 1990.
Freire, Paulo. Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 30th Anniversary Edition. Bloomsbury Publishing Inc, 2000.
Iyengar, B.K.S. Light on Life: The Journey to Wholeness, Inner Peace and Ultimate Freedom. Yellow Kite, 2019. (Originally published by Rodale, 2005.)
Kirylo, James D. and Drick Boyd. Paulo Freire, His Faith, Spirituality, and Theology. Sense Publishers, 2017.
Lippard, Lucy R. Eva Hesse. N.Y University Press, 1976.
Satchidananda, Sri Swami. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Integral Yoga Publications, 2020. (Originally published in 1978.)
“Sonia Boyce: 30 Years of Art and Activism.” Frieze, 29 May 2018, https://frieze.com/article/sonia-boyce-30-years-art-and-activism Accessed 24 Dec. 2024.
Uwagba Otegha. Whites on Race and Other Falsehoods. 4th Estate, 2020.
Wolf, Naomi. The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty are Used Against Women. Vintage, 2015. Originally published by Chatto & Windus, 1990.