Thesis (M.A.)--York University, 2001. Graduate Programme in Interdisciplinary Studies. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 146-154). Also available on the Internet. MODE OF ACCESS via web browser by entering the following URL: http://wwwlib.umi.com/cr/yorku/fullcit?pMQ67721.

Saartje BaartJnan was a South African woman who signed a contract in 1810 that effectively made her the property of two white men wishing to exhibit her in Europe because of the shape and color of her body. In this text 1 examine two very different categories of representations of Baartman. First, I discuss images that were produced during Baartman's lifetime that discursively transformed her from a black woman with an identity into a pathologized body known as the Hottentot Venus, and second, I discuss the contemporary black female artists who are producing art inspired by Baartman in order to problematize the racist and sexist assumptions that have been inscribed on the black female body. My research encompasses important scholarship done by white feminist art historians, as well as that by black feminist theorists, and my thoughts on this subject have also been informed tremendously by work that has been done on the visual culture of slavery and on racist stereotypes by post-colonial scholars.

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In this investigation, I explored the praxes of three Black women multimodal artists--including their perspectives, artistic strategies, and creation of material culture objects--to illuminate the myriad ways their work may inspire teachers and learners across various settings. I examined the complex interplay between art, education, and social justice through the lens of Black women's artistic practices. In this research project, I sought to illuminate the transformative potential these practices hold for formal and informal educational settings and assert the need to recognize and integrate Black women artists' diverse epistemologies and aesthetic experiences into broader educational discourses. A central goal entails recognizing the knowledge these artists draw upon and produce. Therefore, this study centers Black women artists’ multimodal production and creative values from an inter-arts perspective that reckons with socio-political critique and aesthetic sensibilities. Theoretical underpinnings for this research are grounded in interlocking critical discourses involving gender, race, power relations, and education. Using a critical arts-knowledge lens, this arts-based project dialogues with and explores ways to make visible the radical aims, unorthodox practices of belonging (McKittrick, 2021), and artistic strategies of Black women artists to reflect on and reimagine the world as they see and experience it. Employing a critical arts-based research methodology, the research engages with the work and perspectives of three Black multimodal artists—Sable Elyse Smith, Renée Cox, and Nanette Carolyn Carter. By examining their artistic strategies, creations, and the socio-political critique embedded in their work, the dissertation reveals how their art challenges conventional educational paradigms and offers radical curricular and pedagogical possibilities. The study is grounded in interlocking critical discourses on gender, race, power relations, and education, utilizing a rhizomatic conceptual framework to explore the interconnectedness of these themes. This research's findings illuminate art's significant role in fostering critical consciousness, challenging existing norms, and advocating for change. Through the narratives and artistic expressions of Black women artists and Black women art educators, the dissertation underscores the urgency of integrating multisensory and multimodal approaches into educational curricula. Such integration enriches the academic experience and prepares students to navigate the complexities of a multicultural world with a deeper understanding and appreciation for the diversity of human expression and knowledge."Beyond Beauty" calls for expanding curriculum and pedagogy that centers on Black women artists' aesthetic encounters, creative processes, and social justice commitments. I advocate for a more inclusive, dynamic, and transformative educational landscape by highlighting these women's narratives and artistic insights. This research contributes to the ongoing discourses on the importance of art in and as education, pushing for a future where the rich tapestry of human experiences is fully recognized and integrated into the very fabric of learning and teaching.

D. Tech. (Department of Visual Arts and Design: Fine Art, Faculty of Human Sciences), Vaal University of Technology. / Studies on art made by women have been deprived of their place in the history of art, globally, however, within the South African context, white women were placed firmly within the arts while black women were marginalised. This study makes two assertions, that culture was used as a weapon during apartheid in the 1980s, and that black women, as artists, contributed to South African art history through conferences and exhibitions. The process adopted in securing these two stated positions was to use the frameworks of Critical Race Theory (CRT) and grounded theory as methods to elicit personal experiences through interviews with six women involved in the arts and who contributed to the apartheid struggle during the 1980s. The process used to structure the research and collect data, was an argumentative review of selective literature. Exhibition reviews, conference presentations and proceedings, as well as journal publications between 1982 and 1990. The review concentrated on ‘what’ and ‘how’ statements made on black artists, specifically black women, to understand the reasons for the neglecting of black women artists in the construction of South African art history in the 1980s. Culture as a weapon of the struggle constructed a substantial part of this research as the study considered aspects that constituted struggle culture during the 1980s and the role of black women within this culture. Important to the role of black women as cultural activists was the inclusion of the oppressive nature of class, gender and race as experienced by black women during apartheid to expose the complexities that impacted black women’s roles as activists. A discussion of conferences, and festivals (with accompanying exhibitions), and the cultural boycott against South Africa, the official adoption of culture as a weapon of the struggle, and the resolutions taken at these conferences is investigated. Also of importance was the inclusion of women as a point of discussion at these conferences: their poor position in society, and support for the inclusion of more women into the visual arts. In support of black women’s contribution to South African art history, a discussion on black women as cultural activists is included. This includes interviews with six activists who were part of the liberation struggle during the 1980s who shared their experiences. The study asserts that black artists, specifically black women artists, were prejudiced during the 1980s. This did not however serve as a deterrent to their contribution to a South African art history. Anti-apartheid movements such as the African National Congress (ANC) and the anti-apartheid movement (AABN), Amsterdam, played an integral role in creating alternative cultural platforms that supported a ‘people’s culture’, that enabled the use of culture as a ‘weapon of the struggle’ against apartheid.