Reflection: Christine Sun Kim, A Selby Film
This short film and more specifically Kim’s practice were incredibly powerful in its exploration of kinetic media in order to visualise sound and thus creatively respond to the artist’s hearing disability in an empowering manner. A few reflections:
02:16: My surprise at realising Kim has a disability. Thus far, her actions and appearance could be perceived as ‘normal’, already the first challenge point. What does it mean to be ‘normal’ and by association ‘not normal’? We know disabilities are not necessarily visible, but unconsciously I presumed she didn’t have a disability because of her appearance. Here another challenge point. Why do I expect ableism to be the norm/the standard?
02:33: The idea of ownership is so compelling. Who gets to own intangible elements such as sounds and who doesn’t? How do we own them? What does it mean to own them anyways – what forms this ownership takes?
03:07: The idea of reclaiming. Isn’t reclaiming a form of activism?
03:16: Her practice itself is absolutely incredible! The exploration of media is something that I have been currently investigating with my MA Fashion Communication students. I co-lead a module in which we examine how medium itself is a vehicle for fashion interpretation, in that each medium enables specific forms of interpretation and understanding. In the workshops, I have incorporated elements of play and fun in order for us to consider the properties and potential of different media, such as drawing, making, moving image, etc. But I had not considered how medium can and should also respond to disability. How can I include disability to our discussions of medium and fashion?
03:40: the idea of internalising a language. I somehow relate to this, as an immigrant whose native language is not English. How can you find your voice when you don’t command the language – be it written, spoken or listened language. This also relates to another project I’m running with my first year BA Fashion History and Theory students, where we’re collaborating with a group of refugees from Afghanistan and Iraq currently based at Oxford and whose command of English is fragmented. Our mutual language in this case is fashion, and we are using it to connect to each other and explore our mutual human experiences beyond the cultural difference.
03:52: Her frustrations due to her parents own challenges with language. Going beyond the matter of language, how our (learning) experiences are interconnected. This, to me, alludes to the idea of co-learning, best conceptualised by Freire.
05:03: ‘Mediated interpretation’. Something to consider.
06:25: ‘Freedom in a performance arena’. Something to consider.
06:30: ‘Starts with the body’. I am very interested in spirituality and in the buddhist tradition, the body is a key tool for understanding our experiences and emotions. We always go back to the body, the breathing. Another thought: if the body has unique characteristics (disabilities, etc), what kind of experiences do we achieve? What kind of freedom?
07:31: ‘Feedback as physical’. Something to consider.
07:38: distinction between sound vibrations as visceral and internal, and sign language as external and spatial. What about with other disabilities? What becomes internal and what is external? In my teaching, how can I enable visceral and internal experiences? I would argue that PowerPoint presentation is very external and spatial! Just yesterday, in my 100 Years of Change lecture for BA Fashion Communication students, we danced together to disco, in order to consider how clothing, movement and music were interconnected in the context of 1970s fashion.
07:59: ‘let’s listen with our eyes, not just our ears.’ Can we also see with our hands (making process)? Feel and smell with our eyes (visual analysis)? Speak with our bodies (performance)? I’m thinking of methodologies here. How can my FHT students incorporate different methodologies to their research projects, and could these methodologies enable more accessible and inclusive assignments beyond the problematic academic essay?
I love the rigour and thought you have put into this and your other blog posts.
Do you keep track on how long each publication takes you?
Whilst your blog is extremely valuable to read I’m worried you may exhaust yourself in the long run.
The PGCert is a marathon.
Can’t wait to see you in class,
H
You are absolutely right, I do spend way too much time with some posts. The Reading Notes posts are basically my learning mechanism to engage with sources. Instead of ‘highlighting’ an interesting passage, I copy and paste, thus creating a bank of quotations that I can come back to or quote later. The Reflection posts are most more time consuming… Since I couldn’t write the blog posts as per the timetable (those were my worse weeks at work), I am now having to go through a marathon. Not ideal, my head feels like exploding! But Aisha suggested I time each post to 30min – when the alarm goes, I just finish it off.
Hi Isabella, it’s really great to interact with you through these blogs. Like you I am sprinting towards the end – and I appologise about the inundation of comments at the end of the unit.
I really love how you speak about the common language between your students and the refugees being fashion. That is powerful. You write about us humans claiming ownership over intangible elements, I feel like this inclusion of fashion as a language has similar connotations. Who decides what a language is? The definition of a language in itself is probably deeply influences by the cultural and environmental factors which govern it’s existence. I love speaking to my students about language – about creating their own glossaries in which they can use it to frame their practice.
Also, your questions at the end are brilliant! Why can’t we use our senses to experience the world in ways which aren’t conventional. An inspiring read, thank you.