Posted by Heather Ault, August, 2008
Aug 6 - Sept 14 Gender Agenda Exhibit Information Check back for photos and videos from the opening night! |
Posted by Heather Ault, July, 2008
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artist statement My work celebrates the reproductive health practices found in all human societies around the world, from ancient times to the present. These ideas are presented through conceptually based digital media objects and installations. I seek to relay a Despite the existence of academic scholarship about this history, I’ve found most people believe contraception and abortion methods are recent inventions that occurred as a result of the 20th century women’s liberation movement. In addition, the polarized pro-choice/pro-life reproductive rights debate has been caught between two specific symbols; the hanger and the fetus. In my work, I deconstruct these myths and invite viewers to discover a radically different history of the roots of reproductive choice. My work visualizes the ancestral traditions passed down for millennia by lineages of mothers, grandmothers, and great-grandmothers. I believe the rediscovery of these practices is deeply transformative when one considers “the right to choose”, especially for those who have been exposed to the “abstinence until marriage” and “anti-abortion” rhetoric. Through my studio practice at the School of Art and Design at University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana, I have created a whimsical, edgy, and thought-provoking poster series using existing historical artifacts, such as artemisia and birthwort, a Malthusian syringe, the menstrual extractor, Anthony Comstock, coitus interruptus of the Ming Dynasty, and Casanova’s condoms. I am also constructing a historical database as a repository for this collection of visual and written history, designing a traveling red tent installation with an abortion stories clothesline, collecting ethnographic video and audio interviews about people’s knowledge of this history, and expanding the poster series to tell more stories about women's agency, empowerment, discrimination, and censorship. As an emerging artist, I am disseminating my work through social justice activities and networks, such the Wanderlust Reproductive Justice Bicycle Tour, an 1800-mile bike trip from New Orleans to New York City. Through these spaces and activities, I hope to link the ancient history with the growing reproductive health, rights, and justice movements that honor the sexual and reproductive desires of all people. biographyArt has always central to my life, as a student at Grosse Pointe South High School and then at the College for Creative Studies in Michigan where I earned a BFA in Graphic Communications. My professional experience began during that time with a research position at William Beaumont Hospital where I created medical educational materials for teaching residents about fetal imaging. This groundbreaking work in education and multimedia lead me to join Butler Graphics in Troy, Michigan where I assisted corporate clients, the automotive industry, and the Detroit Institute of Arts in developing emerging digital media technologies. Upon moving to San Francisco, I entered the non-profit sector as a fundraiser and organizer for women’s health and pro-choice organizations and was exposed to the world of activism. After a subsequent move to Arcata, California, I taught digital design courses and workshops for Humboldt State University, College of the Redwoods, and Eureka City Schools. During this seven-year period, I continued to work in collaboration with other community members on many important environmental, social, and economic projects and campaigns. Recently, I relocated to the mid-West for a three-year Masters of Fine Arts program the University of Illinois. The Champaign-Urbana area will continue to be my home for two more years as I build a body of work that focuses on reproductive health history using research methods and new media technologies. I look forward to engaging with many audiences in galleries and art spaces, festivals, and other educational venues during my tenure as a graduate student and beyond. For more information about my work, please visit my website at www.heatherault.org. purchase a posterTo puchase a poster, click on an image. Or, visit the Gallery Project in Ann Arbor, Michigan from August 8th through September 14th, 2008 to inquire about these posters in person. |
Posted by Heather Ault, May, 2008
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This summer, I am participating in a five-week bicycle tour from New Orleans to New York! The ride is from May 26 through July 1st. I will be riding with fifteen other reproductive justice activists from across the country! We will meet with organizers, activists, educators, and health care workers and work to raise awareness about the social justice and human rights work being done in this region of the country. Each day, we will ride about fifty miles, through small towns and large cities, and connect local issues with global struggles, and This ride is being organized by Nora Dye, an amazing woman who rode her bike solo from NY to California last summer and is doing it again. She has named this ride the Wanderlust With Rhonda tour. The Wanderlust team is also working with the Pro-Choice Public Education Project in New York City, the organization sponsoring the trip. As a thank you for your donation, you will receive an Ancient Choices poster to celebrate women's choices and commemorate this trip! (Update 8/7/08: Posters are available for a purchase of $100 each. Please click here for more information.) |
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Over the course of 35 days, we will ride from New Orleans to New York City through 13 states, 1600 miles, at 50 miles per day! If you know of anyone we should talk to in any of the cities we will be passing through, please contact me at heather(at)heatherault(dot)org to let me know!
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Ancient Choices | Heather Ault | CC 2008
