Hymns is a body of work that subjectively responds to racial and gendered representation, the legacy of colonialism, and childhood adversity. Through a Black feminist approach, Joyce Treasure will present a multidisciplinary visual narrative formed from a collection of miniature portraits, traditional crafts, video art, assemblage and a zine. Through this bricolage of artworks, the work acts as a reflective site to employ critical research methods to explore the tensions between morals, faith, politics and the conventional Eurocentric powers of knowledge. The work began in 2018 and mainly produced during my 12-month residency with Grand Union/Bruntwood and showcased as part of my end of year black studies dissertation. The collection was commissioned by Bruntwood to be exhibited in Manchester, 2020, but was cancelled due to Covid 19.
Video
2020
Needle-felted bust sculpture
80cm x 132cm
2019
A critical examination of coloniality/modernity employed as a decolonial method using a black feminist approach. The piece attempts to engage with the legacy of slavery and colonialism that points to the marginalised Black woman, race and gender. Sylvia Marcos tells us that gender theory offers us an opportunity to rethink corporality. She tells us the female body, rather than thought of as the centre of our oppression, instead holds a privileged place in our current theory as a source of innovation.