This lesson should take you about 12 minutes to complete.
Activism is about changing the status quo and asserting that things can be different. However, when were caught up with our lives and our realities it’s hard to imagine how things could be different. Without a clear vision, the struggle can seem hopeless: we will always be oppressed, governments and people in power will never change. Art enables us to imagine alternative ways of living, it presents us with a different picture of ourselves and the world and makes us feel empowered in relation to those who exert power over us. Art show us that the status quo is not inevitable.
In the following clip, Helena Walshe, speaks about her work with Speaking of Imelda, a direct-action feminist performance group based in London. Helena talks about turning up ‘unexpected, uninvited, often probably unwanted’ into different spaces. As you watch, think about the following questions
Let’s think about the space that Speaking of Imelda themselves occupy. As Irish artists living in the UK they embody the histories of colonialism and discrimination against Irish people in the UK. As abortion activists, they also embody the history of travel of abortion seekers from Ireland to the UK
Speaking of Imelda turn up in the spaces where Irish prestige and power are represented in the UK (a London dinner with the Irish Taoiseach, the annual St Patrick’s Day Parade, the Irish Embassy). By showing up in these spaces and literally embodying histories of colonialism and abortion travel, they disrupt and transform these spaces. They highlight an aspect of the Ireland/UK governmental relationship that is deeply embarrassing for the Irish government and Irish establishment in the UK. They transform these spaces from places where Ireland and its government displays its prestige to places where Ireland and its government displays its shame.
You might also have noticed how funny Speaking of Imelda are and how much Helena Walsh is laughing throughout the interview. Speaking of Imelda use spectacle and humour to change the space. They poke fun at the dominant institutions, using humour to highlight hypocrisy and double standards. However, unlike a political stand up comic, they do this by enacting their performances within the spaces of power. Thus, the places and the people who symbolise that power (The Taoiseach of Ireland, St Patrick, The Irish Embassy) become actors in and the settings for the performance!