Thank you Arts Council England! My Neurophototherapy R&D project has had the most profound impact on my practice and in my life too.
The gifts of Neurophototherapy have included collage, and a deep immersion in the collage form and online community. This has powered a prolonged maker/research phase, and altered some of my outcomes. Although I have hit all my targets I’ve needed extra time.
Oh, and that’s another thing! ACE, you were wonderful in understanding that neurodivergent practice sometimes takes longer and needs more space. My additional three months were granted speedily and with such compassion! Personal circumstances have changed under this long pandemic and this was so sensitively handled.
The greatest gift though is that of CONGRUENCE. This is something I talk and write about often. Achieving autistic selfhood can be an extremely perilous journey in a neurotypical world. This new transitional work, my new collage book EYE SPY BARCELONA (NEURO) nails it! I’ve finally found a way to bring all the elements of my autobiographical practice together, and here I fuse my postmemory practice and my work on neurodivergence.
This resolves the often painful schism I have experienced between my creative practice and my personal and professional advocacy. Of course, this is a personal choice. We don’t have to make work about identity, but I work autobiographically! I needed to do the emotional processing and creative working through that Neurophotherapy R&D has allowed. Photomontage and collage has provided the necessary medium to get me there.
I am so very grateful for the empowerment and energy this brings, and excited by all the conversations this project has also supported. My work is resonating and impacting across the globe, thanks to the online community. I’ve become intensely interested in collage as a powerfully transforming medium, and in the next step for this work. There are many, many avenues and iterations that are possible. My head’s in a spin and my collage fever continues!
You can see all my collage work on my Instagram account @s_boue
I have a dedicated highlight on this account called EYE SPY, where you can see all the pages.
