The struggles for social equality between men and women remain
an area of continuing relevance to any quest for a holistic
understanding of economy, society, culture and politics in
contemporary Africa – as, indeed, in every other region of the
world.
And yet, the general, instinctive but misleading assumption has
persisted, even in otherwise knowledgeable circles, that any
reference to gender is little more than a code word for raising
narrow, even parochial concerns that are specific to the
interests of
women. In a bid to correct this erroneous instinct and, in so
doing, open new frontiers of reflection on gender issues among
African social researchers, CODESRIA has decided to build on its
tradition critical and innovative gender research by focusing
its annual Gender Institute on themes that will both contribute
to an erosion of stereotypes about gender studies and advance
the frontiers of gendered knowledge as knowledge that is
holistic. To this end, the 2006 Gender Institute will be
focusing on the arts.
The arts, broadly defined, have always been an integral part of
the African historical experience as, indeed, is the case with
all human societies; some would even go one step further to
argue that, for better or for worse and without any tendentious
intentions, the arts are an integral part of the African
personality and identity. Archaeologists and historians date the
earliest forms of artistic expression in Africa back into
antiquity, from the period when human beings were still in the
cave. Over the centuries, as contexts have changed and societies
undergone transformation, so too have the arts evolved and been
reinvented, with some artistic forms being phased out, new ones
introduced, and some others radically altered. Many of the
artistic forms that existed in Africa prior to the continent’s
contact with the rest of the world were the products of the many
different ways in which various categories of people related to
their local environment and local histories, and the ways in
which they imagined or interpreted the world beyond their own
immediate boundaries. The African encounter with the outside
world, especially the contacts with Europe from the 15th century
onwards, led to the introduction of new artistic forms and the
adaptation of existing ones to the imperatives of
externally-induced change. But there was also a politics of
imposition of artistic forms by which, particularly during the
colonial period, certain forms were privileged while others were
suppressed in the name of the ideology of “civilisation” that
was integral to the white man’s burden.
As an important vehicle for, among many other things, recording
and transmitting individual and shared experiences,
communicating critical messages, adding value to the enjoyment
of life, conveying resistance and defiance, seeking individual
and collective catharsis, and expressing collective identities,
the arts are laden with relations of power arising from the
welter of social contradictions that define society. In other
words, the arts are neither socially neutral nor innocent;
rather, they bear and in some cases convey the various social
divisions that exist in society whether these be class, ethnic,
racial, gender, or generational. As a vector of images and
imaginings, the arts have, historically, been a powerful tool
for social struggles, political propaganda and commercial
advantage. This is evidenced as much in the conceptualisation of
social relations that underpins the arts (such as painting,
theatre, dance and performance, and films) as in the specific
social division of labour that is built into the assignment of
roles and the quest for empowerment through artistic
expressions. Whether as metaphor for social
inequalities/injustice, social resistance, the quest for social
empowerment, or the projection of power, contentment, or hope,
the arts present an exciting but much neglected terrain of
gender research in the African academy.
Participants in the 2006 Gender Institute will be invited to,
among other things, explore various aspects and dimensions of
gender in the arts as captured in the historicaland contemporary
experiences of Africa, beginning with the conceptual,
methodological and empirical challenges which are posed, and
proceeding from there to achieve interpretative critiques that
might help to develop and deepen insights into the ways in which
the arts are gendered. The multiple dimensions in which men and
women are differentially represented in the arts, the ways in
which the relationships between men and women are captured in
artistic expressions, the gendered nature of some of the
silences in artistic preservation of history and memory, and the
statements that can be gleaned on the hopes and aspirations for
the future. Proposals drawing from different components and
genres of the arts - music, painting, theatre, dance and
performance, cinematography, literature, orature, fashion,
advertisement, etc. - will be welcomed for consideration for the
Institute.
The objectives of the 2006 Gender
Institute are to:
-
Provide a platform to African scholars with an interest in
undertaking theoretical and empirical research on the arts
in Africa;
-
Familiarise researchers with the latest literature in the
field and through this help consolidate an African
perspective on the theoretical debates taking place;
-
Sharpen researchers’ gender analytic skills, as well as
promote an African feminist methodology in the study of the
arts;
-
Encourage African knowledge production on the arts and, in
so doing, contribute to the emergence of a critical mass of
networked intellectuals with an active research interest in
deepening research on this theme.
