about

Decoloniality refers to effort to dismantle the ways coloniality continues to permeate contemporary life and institutions, whereas coloniality refers to the invisible ways it continues to shape contemporary society, institutions, political structures, economic systems, cultural production, and social relationships — coloniality affects everything from the language used to describe the world, to ways we understand history and identity, to the distribution of power and resources. Decoloniality forms a range of strategies which might involve critiquing dominant cultural narratives and representations, challenging oppressive power structures, amplifying marginalized voices and experiences, and creating new spaces for dialogue and engagement.

While it was never described as such, my parents work within the Toronto-area schools/ school board was implementing decoloniality strategies throughout the elementary school system, and this permeated dinner table conversations while I was growing up. I have since found much of my work and organizational collaborations involved structural variations on this theme, ranging from flipping the script to spatial strategies and tactics, to efforts that may feel decentring to some.

As an Indo-Caribbean-Canadian female artist, my work is deeply informed by my experiences living at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities. I use my creative practice to reconstruct obscure histories, to challenge or question dominant narratives and power structures that perpetuate inequality and exclusion of those who were historically silenced or overlooked.

The Joss Paper series (2009/2022) is an example of decolonial exploration. Altered Canadian passports, collaged with currency from the global south (relative to the travel in each passport), elicits a broad range of meanings — contemporary globalization, to post-coloniality, and eliciting affective nationalism. A Decade’s Insomnia (2010), a series of ten mixed media works on paper, explores trauma dreamstates. Saturday Mornings (2012), a short experimental video work using open-sourced cartoons from the 40s, emulates the mind as it attempts to reconcile alternate realities.

I often worked on small teams responsible for big regions, where issues that surface are immediately taken seriously due to the implications to a large user and manufacturing base… small decisions affect millions of people. From fields to factories to distribution channels and office staff — an established business losing pace in high growth markets mean eventual job losses across the board, in countries where there sometimes aren’t safety nets for employees. These are seen as real consequences, even when emerging market declines are unlikely to affect the share price of a large multinational.

Working on dominant brands in a category (sometimes with century-old legacy companies), they tend to be less focused on $ growth and scaling due to their global dominance. The key focal points are usually how they’re pacing against category and global GDP growth vs. currency fluctuations across regions… and also emerging/ competitive innovations. These tend to reveal where changes are needed to ensure market dominance is maintained. The domestic companies, startups and non-profits I’ve been exposed to, however, tend to be more concerned with attracting resources, scalability and capacity building (in that order) where addressing one gives rise to issues in the next.

Regional/int’l teams are an added layer/expenditure, and demonstrate returns by accelerating progress of the country teams. The prevalence of the overarching culture is much reduced, partly because int’l teams prefer it, partly because it’s more expedient to the business needs of regional environments. Spaces where people from various geographies and levels of the organization continuously pass through, where insights/ issues on the business can be shared, experimented on or further developed. An idea that surfaces in one country might be developed at the regional level and tested in another before being elevated to a global team. Individuals from one country might collaborate in the regional office on an extended project for launch across multiple countries. The more successful capacity-building programs are often led from regional hubs due to proximity, better integration and inclusion.

My role was very specialized. I’d usually focus on a particular brand when a cross-disciplinary team couldn’t move the needle on a creative reinvention/ repositioning. I’d be involved for 8-10 months to lead a strategic and creative change, then turn it back over to the team lead to continue for several years without any regional involvement. Increasingly, my insight was sought out more upstream in the product development process.

My interest is in to experimenting with media, its evolving forms and its role as a catalyst for systemic and societal changes. It’s always an interesting time to experiment when technology is being absorbed into the social, ecological and biological. The role of media + technology in societal de-/re-construction and how individuals are using it to circumnavigate long-standing oppressions, are themes I am currently exploring. These are informed by navigating global infrastructures, seeing how legal structures and trade policies seem to shape them, and falling through structural gaps and perceptual disconnects in a rapidly globalizing economy.