An Ongoing Synopsis of Research, Reading and Recording
2021
Since November 9th 2021, I’ve been blogging about my research at this very blog - https://phiz-phys.blogspot.com/ , documenting reading, activity, thoughts and observations, and pieces of work I’ve made since starting the course in October. So far I’ve produced a single and series of cartoon/comic-style works, an audio-visual piece created from my experiences of adult webcam performance through 2020, and a series of photographic works inspired by early sculptural work of Allen Jones. Other posts explore relevant areas of interest – whether taxonomies, modes and forms of representation, aspects of gendered physicality in and out of specific contexts, and general views of varying types of work and how it is received.
On 26th November I delivered a paper at the “latest in the annual series of
Aarhus Old Norse Mythology”, entitled “In Name Only? A Critical Analysis of
the Wælcyrge‘s Presence in Old English Texts” – a shortened version of
the Humanities essay written for Old English texts module in Semester 2 of my
MFAAH earlier that year. Through this conference I have now begun to
collaborate with two other researchers - Meghan Mattsson Mc
Ginnis, researcher in archaeological history of religion, at Stockholm
University and Ross
Downing, a researcher based in Denmark, ON and OE religion and literature.
Both have expressed interest in working with me to produce a future paper. While this research
does not relate directly (as yet) to my current research topic, it does
underpin my overall concerns in dealing with socio-cultural constructions of
the ‘Other’, beings and forms who cross gender boundaries. Mythology
per se has long had a major role in my developing art and writing
careers, and these parallel researches may go on to inform work and writing
beyond my PhD.
I’ve reached out to several academics and practitioners: namely Annie Sprinkle PhD, and John Howard, a comic artist and illustrator. I have recently completed two rounds of interviews with him via email, regarding his distinctive artworks of 'shemale'/3rd gender hermaphroditic figures, produced since the 1980s, whilst working for Hustler and other adult publications. I also contacted Dr Angela Jones, Professor of Sociology, Farmingdale State College at State University of New York, whose academic papers on non-binary and transmale performers in online pornography explore very similar territory to my own work. Angela has already recognised this, and has suggested a future collaboration, with a view to producing a paper or longer piece of research into this under-represented area of representation.
December - January: 2 short films created - Revelation 6:12 and The Festival
2022
February: Applied for an LGBTQIA+ bursary with ShaperCaper. Denied due
to technical problems (email flagged as ‘junk’).
Created the 20-minute cyberpunk film 'Hardwired' in mid-February: pre-production (4 days), filming (1 day) and editing/sound/music/post taking about another 3 days. The film embodies many of my personal research subjects: dual entities (in this case, male and female twins), the myth of Medusa, the gaze, and the relationship between artist & artwork.
Applied to speak about my experiences and ongoing work at ‘OutFest:
Getting into Visual Art’, online Zoom event on 15th Feb. Ten minute
talk about my experiences and journey at DJCAD from BA -> MFAAH -> PhD. Did
this, got paid, smiley face.
Entered work (The Wanderer & the Wish-maid, short
film from 2020) in the DJCAD Research Expo 2022. Film featured on a large projection, on a loop with a number of other filmed artworks and the film's first public showing. This ran in the DJCAD Matthew Gallery, Level 5 between 28th January 2022 and 18th February 2022.
Feb-March: Working through the ThinkWrite ‘My Thesis in 10 Easy
Steps’ online course, taking notes for future reference.
Research reading beginning to look at semiotics, sign systems, and how assumptions (and prejudices) may be coded or read into specific visual forms, performances, and juxtapositions. Beginning with Barthes, with whom I'm already a little familiar, Lacan, and branching out into other writers.
Realised a small photo project ‘Lateralus’, a couple of cartoon sketches aimed at developing a distinctive visual ‘Otherly’ shorthand drawing style (cf. John Howard – forms which are not instantly identifiable and quantifiable in familiar terms) and several of the video/performance project ideas mentioned above (‘Endura’, ‘Layer Upon Layer’ – the latter enhanced by recent supervisor discussions on research method, specifically notions of exposing the artifice of my normal working practice and revealing the actual domestic environment in which I regularly work).
16th March: Questions emailed to Annie Sprinkle PhD.
21st March: Spent 1 day with Louis Dalziel shooting his script ‘Dawn’, my first paid performance in someone else’s film work.
29th March: Initial email query sent to Laura Kipnis with hope of launching a discussion on the classification of marginalized bodies as 'obscene', and other porn-specific matters of gender. Laura responded, but too busy to discuss.
31st March Submitted 'Hardwired' to the Berwick Film Festival
6th April Zoom discussion with transgender writer Juliet Jacques re: 'Écriture trans-féminine?', her idea (after Cixous) of creating a specific trans female voice for recording personal lived experiences. Wrote to Mal Journal with a pitch for an essay (no response).
11th April 3-hour Zoom chat with Meghan McGinnis on Old Norse concepts of gender, archaeological evidence of 'female warrior'-types, the archaeological issues surrounding the gendering of bones and therefore 'types of people'; interpretations of magic and magic use as gendered, graves such as the male Sami 'shaman' buried with 'female' garments and 'deviant burials' of outsiders and societal outcasts nonetheless deemed dangerous to a community - issues of societal status.
12th April Zoom chat (2 hours) with Dr. Angela Jones of NY Farmingdale University on non-binary selfhood, online performance/webcamming, and wider issues. Follow-up talk agreed post-my TMC session in late May; meantime, Angela offered to send me her book, 'Camming: Money, Power, and Pleasure in the Sex Work Industry'. Sign-off form sent for future citation consent.
13th April Following Angela's advice, wrote to 'Sexuality & Culture' journal with a pitch for an auto-ethnographical essay (rejected).
14th – 15th April Attended 'Pitch Perfect - Public Speaking, Networking and Engaging' webinar
19th April First rough draft of thesis chapter begun (3K words). DJCAD Research Ethics Training, 1-1 session with Helen Gorrill – where we discussed my options for future tutoring and teacher training at DJCAD, future ‘champion’ for trans*/non-binary concerns, as well as my ongoing commitment to the InGear research project (which lists me as a co-director). Annie Sprinkle responded to my research questions.
20th April ShaperCaper contacted me as a follow-up to the Outfest LGBTQ+ artist
bursary which I applied for in February, allowing me to keep the same pitch for
a new Dundee-based sharing of work in June.
23rd April Poetry slam (organised by Icebreaker Comedy & Spoken Word) event in
Dundee – won with 3 works from my ‘Punk Trilogy’. Invitation to compete in
national event in Glasgow, January 2024. (First public performance since end of
2019).
26th April Appointed Chair of Trans Champions at DJCAD. First draft of first thesis chapter finished (‘Alternative Legacies: Contextualizing the Careers of Annie Sprinkle PhD. and John Howard’, 5k words).
27th April Completed ThinkWrite 'My Thesis In 10 Steps – Bitesize!' online course.
29th April Awarded BRAW LGBTQ+ bursary (£500) to make art for ShaperCaper/Dundee Pride public event in June 2022.
10th May Talk (1 hour) delivered to MFAAH class discussing my own class work of the previous year. Slideshow and presentation
17th May Zoom discussion with ShaperCaper about my plans for the public bursary work - 3 short full-colour comic strips to be produced, on the subject of international trans rights.
18th May Hotchpotch open mic poetry night at the Hunter S Thompson, Dundee (3 short pieces).
21st May Scottish Trans Pride
march and event, Paisley. Video documentation of march.
27th May Attended 'Tay Late: Because We Must' show at the V & A, Dundee.
15th June Public premiere of spoken word piece 'Stevie Nicks', at the Hunter S Thompson, Dundee.
Submitted proposals for live performance piece 'Weimar Trilogy' to Dundee Fringe festival 2022 and Glasgow Buzzcut 2023; 5 short films submitted to 'Queer Arts Now' exhibition call-out (rejected, August 2022)..
18th June Public talk/presentation given as part of BRAW bursary in association with ShaperCaper and Dundee Pride. 'Welcome?' - a series of graphic works illustrating international trans rights problems.
8th July Delivered paper 'Pornographics as Queer Method: Using Adult Online Entertainment as a Strategy for Developing Non-Binary Gender and Being' at the SGSAH 'Prospectives 22' online symposium. (Title courtesy of Dr. Angela Jones).
20th July Photographs from Scottish Trans Pride published in Coin-Operated Press' 'Pride is a Protest Zine':
Also Read excerpt from 'Ravensong' at the Hunter S Thompson, Dundee - prose poem submitted to Cthulhu Books' call-out for 'xeno' fiction 'Making Kin'.
August 17th Recited complete 'Punk Trilogy in 4 Parts' at Hunter S Thompson, Dundee (open mic).
September 8th Created video version of performance poetry series, 'Weimar'
September 16th-17th Work 'Cyborg Goddess' featured in the Dundee University-hosted 'Science, Art, Life' exhibition at the Dalhousie Building.
September 17th Performed Act 2 of 'Weimar' ('Marlene and Me') at open mic section of the Hotchpotch/Edinburgh Loud Poets collaboration event at Hunter S Thompson, Dundee.
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| Photo credit: Dundee University |
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| Photo courtesy Jack Hinks Photography |
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