Appropriation

I am really struggling today with the whole idea of appropriation. I feel surrounded by people who appropriate everything from weaving and painting techniques to spiritual practice. All the work and ideas feel so false and exhausting to me. Expected and done...over and over and over! The technique and practise so taken out of context as to become meaningless cliche. And constantly edging or crossing the line into plagiarism.

An image of Shelagh... miles from an ancestral home in Wexford, Ireland.

 Am I appropriating or does this image belong to me?

Historically there are whole movements of art based on this culture of  theft and oversimplification. Both the Dadaists and the Surrealists cop to this. Rauschenberg cops to this. But they are honest about what they are doing. It was a challenge to existing convention then. But they all learned and benefited from traditional knowledge. And constantly defyng defied convention is no longer rebellious ...it is adolescent. Dated. Lacking in imagination.

I know this sounds cranky but if you are not a folk don't call yourself a folk artist just because you make cutesy, sloppy work. Folk artists carry on traditions that are generations old and people who are classified as art brut are doing their best to communicate and express challenging realities with whatever materials are at hand. Nothing cute there! Genuine struggle and amazing original accomplishment.

I want people to stop stealing!

I looked up a definition for appropriation.It means the act of taking another's imagery, cultural expression or faith without permission. Out of context, without understanding or tradition. And years and years of practise.

I swear if one more effing blond  blue eyed person says Namaste to me this week or imposes a healing practice that defies and disregards my own cultural reality and healing tradition I will scream the loudest and most vile curse in Gaelic. I will call on Shelagh-Ni-Gig to chase them away with her scary and intimidating crone genitalia. My healing tradition isn't sweet gentle flowers painted in soft cobalt blues and fuchsia.

Stop dressing up and pretending you are a sweet pixie ala Disneyland. Pixies aren't sweet. They spirit away your babies and do terrible mischief. They are soft blue because they are made up and ready for a terrible war.