FEMINISM: GEORGIA GRACE GIBSON

February 16, 2016

There is no doubt that feminism has been around for many years, however within the last 12 months the movement has become exponentially more prominent within my life. I am unsure whether in fact feminism is actually more in the spotlight than ever or if I have just moved slightly out of the dark but I cannot deny that ‘feminism’ (or some variation of ‘feminism’) is a word that I am not surprised to hear daily. Much to the disappointment of the activist inside of me, it is not that I have dedicated much, or any, time and energy seeking out feminism, in fact it is quite the opposite; the mainstream has washed feminism right up to my door. Actresses and musicians have brought it right before my fingertips, pushing it through the cracked screen on my iPhone 6 and into my life (I’m Gen Z: cliché). New friends with bellies full of fire and passion for their beliefs have shown me what feminism means (much more ‘IRL’ than what a z-list celeb can fit into 140 characters) and what can be created by inspired individuals.

Case and point? Georgia Grace Gibson.

Georgia is an undergraduate at Manchester School of Art, a member of the Clandestine Arts Collective, and a Geordie through and through.

I must admit that sometimes art is lost on me, I don’t want to have to stare at something for hours to derive a higher meaning. I like it to be aesthetically pleasing, or unapologetically aesthetically unpleasing. I like it to be bright and colorful with humour and emotion. I don’t like anything to take it too seriously. This is where Georgia and her work are perfect. You can take them at face value, bright colours (like when we first met, she had bright blue hair and a perfectly co-ordinating pastel outfit) and phalluses (I don’t have an anecdote for this one).

Her pottery series ‘Sexual Memorabilia’ perfectly balances humour with reality and feminist issues such as the sexualisation of women versus the frequency of women being degraded for being sexual beings. Sexy versus sexist.

A number of parallels can be drawn between Georgia’s work and the concept that we have produced, such as the involvement of humour, feminism and the empowerment of women.