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Free Your Mind at Touchstone 2024

FREE
YOUR
MIND

This public social justice art endeavor aims to gather and showcase personal narratives of microaggressions, offering a cathartic release.

Participants inscribe their experiences onto ribbons, which are then tied to a net, symbolizing liberation.

The evolving installation creates a public record for discussion.

“Had the opportunity to view this piece in the making. So emotionally powerful, and watching people writing the ribbons and engaging with the artist were additional layers of complexity.”

– Anne Choi

Free Your Mind @Touchstone

An Interactive Art Exhibition

with Visiting Artist: Theda Sandiford

from MAY 17 – SEPT 20, 2024

Free Your Mind is a public textile art endeavor led by artist Theda Sandiford, with the objective of gathering, showcasing, embedding, and liberating personal narratives surrounding microaggressions through a multi-sensory installation.

Microaggressions, those nuanced and sometimes unintentional daily interactions, convey hostile, derogatory, or negative messages or assumptions towards historically marginalized groups. The cumulative impact of these routine encounters manifests in tangible consequences—stress, anger, frustration, self-doubt, and ultimately, a sense of powerlessness and invisibility.

This project boldly unveils these interactions to offer a cathartic release. Participants are encouraged to share their experiences of microaggressions by inscribing them onto a ribbon, which is then tied to a net, symbolizing the liberation of these stories from their personal narratives. Each ribbon becomes a tangible “story ribbon.”

Share your “story ribbon” while visiting Touchstone’s campus from May to September. Click for Gallery Hours.

This project is supported by Arts, Equity, & Education Fund

Story Ribbons

ABOUT THE ARTIST

An acclaimed fiber and installation artist, Theda Sandiford draws inspiration from racial trauma.

Melding various fibers and found materials, she employs free form weaving, coiling, knotting, and jewelry-making techniques.

Her meticulously gathered materials, along with community contributions, serve as a testament to collective memory, transforming into “social fabric” that intertwines contemporary issues and personal narratives, fostering a rich tapestry of interconnected stories.

Theda Sandiford

Theda Sandiford, an acclaimed, self-taught fiber and installation artist hailing from St Croix USVI, is celebrated for her award-winning artist practice.

Drawing inspiration from the profound impact of racial trauma, Theda melds various fibers with an array of found materials through the art of free form weaving, coiling, knotting, and jewelry-making techniques. Her meticulously gathered materials, combined with community contributions, serve as a testament to collective memory, transforming into “social fabric.” This intertwines contemporary issues and personal narratives, fostering a rich tapestry of interconnected stories.

At the core of Theda’s creative process lies community art-making, a foundational element. She orchestrates multi-disciplinary experiences that unite individuals, sound, and artistry to cultivate a sanctuary for exploring themes of equity and inclusion, sustainability, and personal well-being.

Theda’s artistic footprint extends globally, showcased in prestigious venues such as World of Threads, Expo Chicago, Untitled Art Fair, SPRING/BREAK ART SHOW, Governor’s Island NYC, New Jersey Arts Annual, and the American Contemporary Craft: National Juried Exhibition. Her work has received acclaim in Excellence in Fibers VI and Fiber VIII from Fiber Art Now, earning her the 2020 Jersey City Arts Visual Artist Award, the 2021 Fellowship in Craft from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, and the 2022 Jersey City Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowship. She has been named a Fellow for the 2023-24 National of Leaders of Color Fellowship program.

Microaggressions encompass subtle, often unintentional interactions laden with hostile messages directed at historically marginalized groups. These insidious behaviors differ from overt discrimination in that those committing microaggressions are frequently unaware of their actions. When confronted, they may dismiss the issue, attributing it to oversensitivity, perpetuating the cycle of harm—a microaggression in itself.

As a Black individual, I’ve frequently encountered incidents where people inappropriately touch my hair without consent, reducing me to an object on display. Similarly, I’ve been lauded for being “articulate,” a backhanded compliment that implies a presumption of intellectual incompetence among Black people. These seemingly innocuous encounters, while subtle, carry significant weight, leading to stress, anger, frustration, self-doubt, and a profound sense of powerlessness and invisibility.

In my artistic practice, I employ a blend of freeform weaving, knotting, and wrapping techniques, drawing upon memories, zip ties, vintage neckties, ribbon, yarn, paracord, rope, bottle caps, recycled fishing nets, and even shopping carts. Through repetitive and meditative processes, I seek to initiate dialogues surrounding implicit bias and stereotypes. My work serves as a medium for vanquishing these disempowering impressions, prompting reflection and introspection on the enduring impact of microaggressions in our society.

Visit thedasandiford.com to learn more.

Follow Theda on Instagram: @misstheda

WATCH

Free Your Mind Artist Talk 1

Watch the recording from May 22, 2024:

Free Your Mind Artist Talk 2

Watch the recording from September 24, 2024:

Free Your Mind Additional Resources

Identifying microaggressions and implicit biases can be challenging but asking oneself reflective questions can help uncover them.

Here are five questions people can ask themselves:

  1. What assumptions do I make about people based on their appearance (e.g., race, gender, clothing)?
  2. How do I react when I encounter someone who is different from me in terms of culture, language, or lifestyle?
  3. Are there certain groups of people I tend to avoid or feel uncomfortable around? Why might that be?
  4. How do I respond to media portrayals of different social, ethnic, and cultural groups? Do I notice patterns in these responses?
  5. When I make decisions about hiring, mentoring, or collaborating, am I consistently favoring certain groups over others? What reasons do I give for these preferences?

Reflecting on these questions can help individuals become more aware of their implicit biases and take steps toward addressing them.

Theda Sandiford's Public Art Project Free Your Mind
Theda Sandiford’s Public Art Project, which was installed on campus during the 2024 season.

Share a statement

about implicit bias or a microaggression you have experienced to release this story from your personal narrative.

Click to Share

Watch this Video

How microaggressions are like mosquito bites.

Watch this Video

To learn more about Implicit Bias.

Take the Quiz

To identify your own biases, take Harvard’s Implicit Association Test. Your results might surprise you!

Click to Start