Paper short abstract:

This paper examines how the use of alternative visual methodology cyanotype, aligns with feminist and decolonial methodologies. Prioritising relational processes over hierarchical structures and centering embodied, experiential knowledge rather than abstract theorisation.

Paper long abstract:

To explore how contemporary dance, as an embodied practice, can be epistemic, I joined seven female dancers and a choreographer on Lauzoua Island in Côte d’Ivoire for a three-week movement residency. The residency focused on creating Femme Akondi, a biographical choreography of Lauzoua women. A choreographed narrative, aimed at revealing the hidden and silenced histories of women from Lauzoua. The residency’s late-night schedule allowed me to spend mornings walking the island to investigate Lauzoua women’s everyday life and movements. Despite linguistic barriers—limited knowledge of Dida on my part and limited French on theirs—photography became a “can-opener,” initiating conversations. However, the perception of my skin tone, often associated with the identity of the coloniser, presented significant challenges in negotiating and minimising my positionality. This dynamic was further compounded by the sociocultural and historical legacies of colonialism. In response, I adopted an alternative visual methodology emphasising collaboration and participation, shifting the focus from "taking" to "making." Cyanotype’s chemical process, where invisible patterns emerge under UV light, shifts the focus from external observation to internal expression, centring the participants' perspectives and experiences. I argue that cyanotype, as a research method, aligns with feminist and decolonial methodologies by prioritising relational processes over hierarchical structures, valuing collective creation over individual output, and centring embodied, experiential knowledge rather than abstract theorization. My findings are supported by the cyanotypes created by Lauzoua women, along with photographs, audio, and video documenting their reflections and the integration of their creations into the stage design of Femme Akondi.