patriarchy

Yesterday I went to the National to see 'A Taste of Honey'.  It was fabulous. 

The play was written by working class Shelagh Delaney, aged 19, in six weeks during the narrow, oppressive, patriarchal 1950s.  Truly amazing. 

Long live feminism I say.

I have also started rereading Bell Hooks' Feminism is for Everybody .  This book brings me back to the meaning of feminism -'feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation and oppression'.  Hooks set out to write a book which was 'concise, fairly easy to read and understand'.  I find the book to be intelligent, balanced, not particularly easy to read but very good at breaking down the theories of feminism, the myths around feminism and the simplicity of feminism.  I like it because it discusses how feminism is advantageous to both men and women - feminism is for everyone - those three words feature in my designs.

Fourth wave feminism is 'issue' focussed.  Young and vibrant....it reminds me that 'the personal is political' - a phrase that is bandied around but has not been attributed to anyone.   Those words  feature in my designs too.

My Masters project is about the use of text in textiles yet so far I have been concerned mainly with pattern designs which reflect the use of technology in fourth wave feminism.  The designs are too busy and I'm not progressing so I'm changing my focus onto text and hope that a different tack will open up some new ideas.