She Said that in Her Tradition They Didn’t Exorcise Demons, But Defeated Them With Love

She Said that in Her Tradition They Didn’t Exorcise Demons but Defeated Them With Love, 2018

Cotton thread, calico, inkjet transfer. Each 20x20cm.

This work reflects on activism around the denial of human rights as a process of healing the patterns of violence that have brought us to where we are now, instead of adding more layers of rage. It depicts two prominent politicians who were both architects of Australia’s brutal system of ‘offshore detention’ of people seeking asylum. As a personal experiment, it seeks the truth of our shared fate as laid out by Tibetan Buddhist Machig Labdron, who trained fearlessly in non-violence and advised her students to turn towards compassion: “Approach what you find repulsive, and help the ones you think you cannot help.”