Feminism and Zine Workshop at Gower College
During March I got asked to run a workshop with my friend in Gower College, Swansea. We got asked to come in to the college to give a talk to some of the art foundation students about ourselves as artists and our feminist exhibition "GIRLS", as well as our university course and general experience, and also to run an art and politics themed zine workshop.
The talk in the morning consisted of us explaining what we do at university in the Surface Pattern Design BaHons course, as well as the UWTSD Feminist Society, showing photographs and giving anecdotes on the universities Fresher's Fair and voluntary events such as bake sales for charity. We then discussed our exhibition that ran for a week in November 2017, and the reasoning behind the work that we had made and why we felt so compelled to create the exhibition and spread word about the positivity behind feminism as a modern inclusive movement. We also touched upon the methods behind our work, such as photography, embroidery and screen printing.
After this talk we were asked to give some students one to one style feedback sessions to suggest new feminist artists, and contextual theories that they could explore within their own work, this was a really exciting opportunity to bounce off of each other and gather so much new information to inspire the girls in their own creative journeys!
The afternoon session consisted of a casual zine workshop, we brought screen printed papers as well as simple patterns for the girls to cut up and create their own artworks from, and all sat working away and discussing some topics about their projects as well as feminism in general. This was a particularly enjoyable part of the day, and I'd love to be able to have the opportunity to be able to create as a collective again. As well as this experience being crucial to my own external experience, it has also allowed me to learn from the girls and get inspired myself into creating more feminist themed artworks and exhibitions!
