Artist Yunique A. Saafir and Curator Corinne Werder Collaborate for My Body: Not for Consumption

Artist Yunique A. Saafir and curator Corinne Werder are collaborating for My Body: Not for Consumption to provide a counter narrative from the dominate normalization of sexual violence. With this unique collaboration between photographer, curator and community-we aim to show that a naked body is not an inherently sexual object.
To fight the conflation of female nudity and sexual availability, Yunique A. Saafir provides images of queer and trans bodies, Black bodies, naked bodies and femme bodies as defiant beings reclaiming their own narrative from mainstream societal scripts. The conversation around rape and sexual assault survivors primarily focuses on one homogenous story-one that everyone finds believable and can empathize with-the general narrative of the "perfect rape."

Because of the successes of intersectional feminism and activist voices worldwide, images of this "perfect rape" victim are widely dispersed, especially in April, which is during Sexual Assault Awareness Month. As a photographer, Saafir works to subvert the way society receives images by giving power back to the subject with a positive and loving lens. Her aim with this exhibit is to urge society to consume images of victims/survivors in a way that promotes support and affirmation of a multitude of experiences, outside of the dominate cultural norms.

To stand against the ubiquity of rape culture and widespread sexual assault, the programming tied to My Body: Not for Consumption will be a continuation of the conversation brought to light by the photography. While the images teach viewers to rethink the dominant narrative around sex, harm and violence, the programming manifests this message.

Grounded in a belief that the issues propagated by rape culture impact everyone, the events provide supplemental information with radical ways of discussing sex and the body to empower participants to take action. By bringing forth people who are doing this work, the audience will be impelled to rethink the ways in which they consume images of the body and sexual violence.

Exhibiting artist info:

Yunique A. Saafir is a photographer in Brooklyn, New York; via a diaspora journey from Kingston, Jamaica. Her work explores personal experiences with mental health and the idea that depression can illuminate the self and spark clarity. Through photography, she posits the idea that sedative feelings can bring healing and that vulnerability is sacred. She believes there's power in that ambiguity and darkness, an unappreciated ability to run directly into the void, to become undone, and to rebuild again.

6pm Panel discussion: 'How Rape Culture Touches Us All'

Moderator: Karmenife Paulino

Panelists: Frankie Decaiza Hutchinson, Candice Fortin, Eva Turner, Xtopher Gross, Yaya Atta Bailey & Vanessa Flores

Research presentations:
7:15pm Slash, Smut, and Sexual Subjectivity by Christina Tesoro
7:35pm Sex Tech and Consuming of Bodies by Cameron Glover
7:55pm How White Feminism Enables Rape Culture and Sexual Terrorism on Survivors of Color by Karmenife Paulino
Workshop:
8:15pm Towards a New Love Ethic: The Value of Sentiment in Sensuality by Olivia Ahn
9pm Poetry/open micFeatured poets: Rahel Neirene & Corinne Kai
10pm Healing ceremony with Yatta Zoker and Aya Clark