Supra-laced Catheter - Scott B.
Description:
Presented is a painted image of a penis, obscured by the window of a laced catheter bag. The image is framed and set on a deep red velveteen backing.
Significance:
I chose to create my image to connect more personally with the concepts I explored. I wanted to comment on the excision of the human condition, where sexuality and disability are bifurcated and compartmentalised, treated as exceptions to our humanity rather than intrinsic components of a whole. I sought to reunify the two by combining the titillation of lace with the stark utility of a catheter bag, implying that conditions of disability need not be singular or devoid of sexuality. Similarly, the backing is intended to elicit feelings of sexuality in the viewer through its deep red colour and sensual texture, while symbolising the visual traits of a suprapubic stoma, which are not unlike the flushing of genitalia during arousal. At the centre of all this is a penis, obscured by the catheter bag, symbolising repressed sexual attitudes society holds regarding disability and sexuality, perhaps even reflecting the difficulty we have in expressing our sexuality when framed by our disability.
Positionality:
I feel drawn to disability and sexuality. As a disability support worker, I’ve engaged with occupational therapists and physiotherapists to help a person with an acquired brain injury access sex workers. Working closely with this person and their family for the last eight years, I’ve witnessed the grief and loss surrounding identity, with sexual identity being inextricable from other components of self. The impact I’ve observed has been far-reaching, affecting self-worth and relationships, culminating in a profound sense of loneliness and alienation. At the root of this issue, political and public opinion have sidelined the sexual identity and emotional needs of this person. Service providers have been reluctant to advocate, and the family has felt overwhelmed and uncomfortable. All these external issues have wholly ignored the humanity of this person and removed them from the core of considerations, reducing the issue to a problem to be solved rather than a person with needs to be met.
Impact:
This subject has impacted me in a way I hadn’t prepared for. I’ve come to realise that while I’ve considered myself an advocate, I’ve denied the humanity of this person no less than everyone else. While I’ve thought myself to be progressive in attitude, I’ve approached the issue clinically. I’ve separated disability and sexuality, regarding sex as existing despite disability. But as disability is part of the human condition, it’s not inherently a sexual challenge to be overcome; it can be a way in which our sexual identity is framed. It can exist in symbiosis. Hoists and slings can be part of sex, assistance with positioning can be foreplay, and the nuances and conditions of disability can be just one of many diverse flavours that make each sexual partner unique. Reconciling my clinical attitude with my empathy for this person has only come about because of the confronting conversations this subject has facilitated. I don’t think I would have reflected substantially on my failings otherwise, and I’m thankful to be able to better support clients in the future because of this.
Wish List:
I wish for my work to facilitate a shared journey, where the viewer is inspired to reflect with me on the divisions and conditions we place between disability and sexuality. I hope for us to see ourselves and others as an amalgam of experiences, to consider an amorphous self instead of a self constructed by individual bricks. I wish that we wouldn’t triage aspects of personhood or impose a hierarchy on which aspects are more valued. I hope that we both walk away recognising that what we find uncomfortable or unpleasant isn’t objectively so, and that our preferences aren’t an empirical metric of what is sexy. I’d love for us both to walk away from this remembering that it’s our differences that make us unique, and our uniqueness is where our beauty resides. It’s the outline that gives us shape and contrasts us
against the world we navigate.
Scholarship:
With supported independent living as an example, sexuality is policed by service providers. Disability and sexual vulnerability can lead to paternalistic approaches that encroach on autonomy and contribute to feelings of isolation, as well as both mental and physical pain (Turner & Crane 2016). The omission of pleasure from the discourse on disability and sexuality denies the humanity of sex and, in doing so, becomes a human rights issue. Sexual expression is shown to benefit physical and mental health, as well as gender equality, self-esteem, and autonomy when considering the intersections of feminism and disability (Coleman, Corona-Vargas & Ford 2021). Even with service providers who consider themselves advocates, sexuality and pleasure take a backseat. Without diminishing the anti-oppressive work that seeks to erase discrimination in employment, community access, health, or representation, these endeavours are more favourable to service providers than combatting the discrimination of sexual exclusion (McRuer 2011). The reasons for this exclusion are multifaceted, but one argument shared by both Tepper (2000) and a respondent in the research of Shuttleworth (2006) is that individuals living with disability are considered child-like. This notion is stark, excluding adults from sexual pleasure and reproduction on the basis that it’s perceived as a danger. This thinking, under the guise of protecting the infantilised, thuggishly decimates autonomy and views pleasure through the lens of risk. A pervasive othering of disability allows for the excision of sexuality from the person and, in turn, results in incomplete personhood and the denial of the complex beauty of the human condition.
4 Comments
Yours is such a beautiful and thoughtful project. Your dismantling of conventional views about sexuality and disability is engaging and evocative. Your contrast between the lace and the catheter bag is so appealing to me that it challenges the audience’s own preconceptions. Your own reflection on your job as a disability support worker brings another layer to your work, exposing the problems of sexual identity in the process. As a whole, this is a very moving piece.
There are a lot of layers to your artifact, and this highlights how much you have taken on this semester. I was really drawn to the reflective nature of your writing and appreciate the transparency of the components of your project. I was drawn to your real-life examples where you have questioned whether you have been an effective ally. This resonated with me too because I have similar thoughts when working with my clients. Although I feel like I am impacting people’s lives in a positive way it is not always the case which I have come to realise too.
I really appreciate how you talked about redefining what it means to be sexual and that instead of imposing our own sexual proclivities on others we should allow people to explore their sexuality freely.
When you spoke about ‘paternalistic approaches’ it reminded me of the way other marginalised groups such as First Nations people and women are policed by the government within policy and societal attitudes. Your writing has made me reflect and wonder what the future has in store for us as a society and as professionals.
I hope I get to work with you in the future, it has been a pleasure.
George.
😊
Hey, Scott! Your artifact is not only cohesive and thought-provoking, but your words are exceptionally captivating. Your work has offered a newfound perspective on the experiences of service providers working with disability and sexuality; there is continuous learning and a profound importance of views beyond clinical perspectives. Your overarching theme of humanity reminds me how sexuality is a connection to humanity for people with disabilities. One aspect of this sexual expression, as explained by Tepper (2000), is mutual recognition, which asserts that all people have a right to equality, reciprocity, consent, and empathy during sexual interactions. Most notably, I greatly admire your honesty about your personal growth throughout this assessment and course. I have also thought to be progressive in attitude, so I often feel hindered from being fully candid about my own misguided perceptions and growth. Thank you for this reminder, and great work!
The play on words you have used in your ‘significance’ section are great hooks that caught my attention as they link to the artefact. The penis “repressed” in the catheter bag, sexuality being “framed” by disability. That was very smart!
When I initially see your artefact, I imagine the penis (sexual desire) being contained by the catheter bag (persons disability) from being in contact with the lace material (sexuality). Your use of symbols in the artefact is a chefs kiss. the artefact can be interpreted in few ways, which I appreciate because it is solely dependent on what the audience make meaning of it.
I appreciate your emphasis on the importance of autonomy granted for people with disabilities when exploring their sexuality. As you said, it is right!
I enjoyed reading what you have composed about your artefact because you delve deep into a range of issues, it brings to mind why it is crucial to approach these issues holistically.
It is warming to read how this subject has impacted on you personally and professionally. Thank you for sharing those vulnerable parts of your inner galaxy, Scott. There are 3 types of mindsets; an emotional mind (driven by feelings), a rational mind (driven by logic), and a wise mind (balance between emotional and rational). Most people are generally emotional or rational oriented and it can be difficult to find that middle ground balance. Reading how you have reflected on your professional identity as clinical based, then acknowledging your desire to combine your sense of empathy with this shows that you are growing as a person. You are growing a wise mindset!
There also seemed to be some doubt when you mentioned yourself as an advocate for people with disabilities and as someone with a progressive attitude. I wanted to affirm that you wouldn’t be growing the way you are if you did not have a progressive attitude:)