Discover the intersection of feminism and ecology through the lens of ecofeminism, a movement that seeks to defend women's rights and preserve nature. Learn about the key artists and theorists who have shaped this thought-provoking concept.
Extract
[...] The body is very important in ecofeminist thought; it is a matter of making women masters of their bodies. It is therefore natural that the art inspired by ecofeminism includes a whole group of works centered around the theme of the body. In the context of this study day, various artists and theorists were addressed, including a selection of which we will present here: Chilean artist Cécilia Vicuna, Italian-Brazilian artist Anna Maria Maiolino, and French anthropologist and feminist militant Nicole-Claude Mathieu. [...]
[...] This day was more specifically dedicated to the concept of ecofeminism: it was about 'sharing, looking, exchanging, listening, practicing to make room and think about the links between the destruction of nature and the different forms of oppression of women'2. » This day was particularly focused on the links that can exist between art and ecofeminism. It is the French anthropologist Françoise d'Eaubonne who first used the term 'ecofeminism' in 1972, in her book Feminism. This last one was a feminist militant belonging to the Women's Liberation Movement. She specifically animated the group 'Ecology and Feminism'. [...]
[...] Anna Maria Maiolino began her career as an artist with works directly criticizing consumer society, and then her research evolved into a critique of the society in which she lives. As is also found in ecofeminist thought, this artist has worked on the idea that food comes from the earth. Finally, Nicole-Claude Mathieu She participated in founding and theorizing materialist feminism. According to this line of thought, male domination does not come only from capitalist society, since it also exists in classless societies, but also from patriarchy. [...]
[...] Finally, according to Françoise d'Eaubonne, ecofeminism is a bearer of an ideal of universalism: it calls for a society totally freed from power struggles, including between the sexes. Despite this first occurrence, ecofeminism as a true movement developed in the 1980s in Anglo-Saxon countries in the context of the Cold War, in reaction to the threat of a nuclear war between the United States and the USSR. Now, ecofeminism is a movement that more broadly groups feminist and ecological demands: it is a matter of 'defending women's right to preserve nature' and 'fighting against the patriarchal and capitalist system that destroys the environment and oppresses women'3. » This struggle targets this system as responsible for an ideology that puts both women and nature in the background. [...]
[...] I found this day particularly enriching because I didn't know about ecofeminism and all the thought that comes from it, and I also didn't know the various artists and theorists who were approached. I was therefore able to discover their work and get to know their conception of feminism and ecology. I found the different exchanges very interesting, and particularly relevant in the current context. Finally, the activity proposed during this day pleased me a lot. It consisted of making a plea on the subject of equality in access to health and care, which I had to present to the entire group of people present during this day. [...]
