A podcast from Selina Thompson Limited about exploring experiments in doing things differently, thinking about access, marginalisation and what we can learn through failure from disabled artists in the UK and beyond.

“So when we constantly remind each other, ‘hey, we deserve to be here’, that's power right there.”

Episode 4’s guests in conversation are Chiara Bersani and Maria Palacios. This episode is exploring experiments in doing things differently, thinking about access, marginalisation and what we can learn through failure from disabled artists in the UK and beyond.

Our host is Toni- Dee Paul - @txnidee , https://www.instagram.com/txnidee/ and this week’s guests are:

1. Chiara Bersani - https://www.instagram.com/chiara_bersan/ - @chiara_bersani

2. Maria Palacios - https://www.instagram.com/laredsocialdemaria/ - @laredsocialdemaria

For full content warnings, a transcript of the episode, links to resources and things referenced please visit: https://selinathompsonltd.co.uk/work/documenting-failure

Don’t forget to subscribe for more wonderful content talking to disabled artists in the UK about failure, documenting our failures and failing joyfully.

Selina Thompson Ltd is a national portfolio organisation supported by Arts Council England, using public funding from National Lottery.

Timestamps / chapter breakdown:

Short breakdown of chapters / areas of discussion:

00:04- 03:37- Introduction to podcast and guests.
03:42- 12:40- Toni Dee asks first question of how you got to the work that you've got to, like when you think about the practice that you have now, the job, the artistic endeavour that you have now, what was the journey to get there.Chiara and Marie talk about their journeys in their practice.
12:48- 44:34- Toni- Dee asks about accessibility in their countries. The guests answer talking about access, access being non-negotiable, complexity of the body, COVID, and the diversity of disabled people and disabled bodies.
44:41- 52:32- The guests and Toni-Dee talk about their most joyful failures.
53:48- -1:01:32- The guests and Toni-Dee talk about what they have learned from another artist or thinker that has transformed their thinking around success or failure.
1:01:32 - Toni-Dee closes off the conversation thanking the guests for joining the podcast.
01:02:12- Outro thanks to the team.

A podcast from Selina Thompson Limited about exploring experiments in doing things differently, thinking about access, marginalisation and what we can learn through failure from disabled artists in the UK and beyond.

“With all of my heart, believe that the changes that we're trying to cultivate together are possible, plausible, and damn near happen. I have that level of unwavering conviction.”

Episode 3’s guests in conversation are Amahra Spence and Christopher Samuel. This is a conversation beautifully holding heavy things with a lightness, and we hope you can feel the care between our guests extended to you too. In this podcast we touch on grief, personal identity, and working / starting careers as black, disabled-led organisations and artists.

Our host is Toni- Dee Paul - @txnidee , https://www.instagram.com/txnidee/ and this week’s guests are:

1.Amarha Spence- https://www.instagram.com/amahra_as- HoodFutures Studio

2.Christopher Samuel -https://www.instagram.com/christophersamuel_/ - @christophersamuel_

For full content warnings, a transcript of the episode, links to resources and things referenced please visit: https://selinathompsonltd.co.uk/work/documenting-failure

Don’t forget to subscribe for more wonderful content talking to disabled artists about failure, documenting our failures and failing joyfully.

Selina Thompson Ltd is a national portfolio organisation supported by Arts Council England, using public funding from National Lottery.

Timestamps / chapter breakdown:

Short breakdown of chapters / areas of discussion

00:03- Opening dialogue from Amahra to set the tone of the podcast
00:41- Toni Dee welcomes everyone to the podcast and introduces guests.

01:48-17:51- Toni Dee asks first question about each guests practice, where it stems from and what they are doing now. The guests each answer with their story.

18:25- 26:05- Toni Dee asks Amahra about her relationship to failure and reframing failure while thinking about endings and closing. Amahra answers with the things she has had to create over the years, how they ended naturally and this is not necessarily failure.

26:11-30:03- Toni Dee asks Christopher about how artistry, leadership and failure are working in his current work. Christopher talks about what failure means to him.

30:22-35:17- Talk about how disabled people are often left out of society and so have had to build their own paths.

35:33- 41:16- Toni Dee asks what has surprised the guest, what has been joyful pivots for them. The guests talk about realising themselves, looking internally, not running away from themselves and showing up as your whole self.
41:22-43.09- Toni Dee asks what are you looking forward to? The guests talk about each guests talk about each others work and being able to be in the moment with each other.

43.09- Toni Dee closes off the conversation and thanks the guests for joining the podcast.
43:30- Outro thanks to the team.

Welcome to Documenting Failure!

A podcast from Selina Thompson Limited about exploring experiments in doing things differently, thinking about access, marginalisation and what we can learn through failure from disabled artists in the UK and beyond.

“Have you seen legs? Can’t relate!....Hurry up! You’re the one, non-disableds, slowing us down. I’m Usain Bolt in this chair.”
For our first episode we are talking with Matilda Feyisayo Ibini about disability, care packages, creating work in a disabled body that doesn’t serve capitalism and thinking creatively about disability and failure..

“If capitalism is the poison, then care is the antidote.”

Our host is Toni- Dee Paul - @txnidee , https://www.instagram.com/txnidee/ and this week’s guests are:
1. Matilda Feyisayo Ibini - @astrominx , https://www.instagram.com/astrominx/
2. Selina Thompson - @selinatltd , https://www.instagram.com/selinatltd/

For full content warnings, a transcript of the episode, links to resources and things referenced please visit: https://selinathompsonltd.co.uk/work/documenting-failure

Don’t forget to subscribe for more wonderful content talking to disabled artists in the UK about failure, documenting our failures and failing joyfully.

Selina Thompson Ltd is a national portfolio organisation supported by Arts Council England, using public funding from National Lottery.

Timestamps / chapter breakdown:

00:00:00- 00:01:55 - Intro to this podcast, who are the guests and what it is about.
00:01:55- 00:04:03 - intros, descriptions of who they are and what they look like
00:04:03- 00:23:49 - About their jobs, what they do and the kind of art they make. What is a care package? How do you build an organisation with care? Access to Work, Support for Work, how much work goes into surviving, unpaid care work and lack of sustainable
systems. Who is valued enough to receive that care in a work context. What happens to freelancers? The concept of how unimaginative ‘Care’ is in the UK, Access Riders in theatre and disability at odds with productivity/capitalism.
00:23:49- 00:35:11 - Imagination that is needed as disabled people, ‘Disabled Oracles’, surviving under capitalism, the evolution of disability, it is always changing and how can we learn from each other?
00:35:11- 00:54:26 - Fear of failure, curious about failure and how guests came to their craft/job.
00:54:26- 00:58:44 - Imagination and fantasy as apart of practice, creativity in all aspects of life and inspiration from Afrofuturism.
00:58:44- 01:04:39 - Problem solving, being creative with failure, talking about rejection and learning from failure as a beginning not an end.
1:04:18 - Guest discussion end.
01:04:42 - Toni Dee thanks all participants and the team who helped make the podcast.