Reflect

What is the role of affect in the archive?

While affect is not often something people associate with the archive, affect and the personal can be as significant to understanding an object as formal documented histories. It can be moreover argued that even those "objective" histories present in the traditional archive are inherently shaped by the positionality and perspectives of the archivists who work on the collection.

For certain histories, as scholars Saidiya Hartman and Christina Sharpe explore in their works, embracing affect becomes an act of remediation. It can help fill in archival absences and reflect an act of care.

As part of RTA893, students are asked to reflect on archival objects and explore questions like: What do these objects make them feel? What connections can they draw between these objects to their contemporary engagements with activism? What stands out about these objects to them?

In contrast to the institutional archive that attempts to obscure the role of the archivist, this collection of reflections from students present multiple - and sometimes contradictory - stories about archival objects that are informed by each student's unique perspectives. Each reflection is informed by a student's unique outlook that shapes what they notice, what they find significant, and what they take away from an object.

As you engage with these works, we encourage you to reflect on your own relationship with these objects and how it aligns with or differs from what is shared by these students.

This poster was created for an event held on International Women’s Day in 1986. This event was a movement to connect feminism which the topic of racism through a series segments including dances and panels. International Women’s Day occurs every March 8th celebrating the excellence of women and the movement between sex equity. This archive showed that this event wanted to bring awareness on the topic of racism in Ontario and how it affect African women in that era. This event is extremely relevant as it would have still worked out if it was created this year.

– Danielle Sahadevan

The “Birth Control Handbook” was an illegal handbook that spread across colleges in 1968, printed by students at McGill University. It was filled with information on safe sex, including information on contraception and abortion. This handbook allowed for a change in women’s rights that was unheard of. Women in Montreal began exploring their own sexual rights and health. This movement sparked a change that a lot of people thought would be impossible at the time, proving how effective people coming together and defying the “rules” can be.

– Liz Corbo

The item I chose is a DVD featuring an experimental/conceptual short film called “At Your Service”. It was created in 1987 through the Manitoba Arts Council. The film primarily tackles female body ideals in a satirical fashion. It utilizes props such as panda slippers, a toy snake, and a male doll. There’s a layered voice over of a man saying some commonly heard phrases that women encounter or comments that are said about women behind their backs. There’s a lot to take in during the just under two minute film, many ideas that can be drawn depending on the viewer and what they focus on. The imagery is very metaphorical and may hold different meanings depending on the viewer. Overall it captures the different kinds of people we will encounter and they’re shown through the objects, for instance as shown above, a snake or a stereotypical man lifting weights. There is an overall uneasy vibe, overlooking the low production quality, the somewhat sinister laughter is odd but all the elements are purposefully done.

-Amreen

The Toronto Dyke March is an annual political demonstration that welcomes people who self-identify as dykes. July 3rd 2010 was the first “Take Back the Dyke” march that was organized for the protest of Pride Toronto’s banning of the term “Israeli apartheid” at Pride occasions. I think this event is very successful in addressing its political message and inviting people to participate in its journey. While the initial march of Toronto Dyke March is the welcoming of self-identifying dykes it branched off and created a more political event with succession of Toronto Pride eliminating the ban.