Liminal Spaces

Liminal Spaces: Migration and Women of the Guyanese Diaspora is an intimate exploration into the art and migration narratives of fifteen women of Guyanese heritage. It spans diverse inter-generational perspectives—from those who leave Guyana, and those who are left—and seven seminal decades of Guyana’s history—from the 1950s to the present day—bringing the voices of women to the fore. The volume is conceived of as a visual exhibition on the page; a four-part journey navigating the contributors’ essays and artworks, allowing the reader to trace the migration path of Guyanese women from their moment of departure, to their arrival on diasporic soils, to their reunion with Guyana.

Eloquent and visually stunning, Liminal Spaces unpacks the global realities of migration, challenging and disrupting dominant narratives associated with Guyana, its colonial past, and its post-colonial present as a ‘disappearing nation.’ Multimodal in approach, the volume combines memoir, creative non-fiction, poetry, photography, art and curatorial essays to collectively examine the mutable notion of ‘homeland,’ and grapple with ideas of place and accountability.

Grace Aneiza Ali (editor), Liminal Spaces: Migration and Women of the Guyanese Diaspora, Cambridge, UK: Open Book Publishers, October 2020. 232 Pages, 72 color illustrations, 8 x 10 inches.

Contributors

Grace Aneiza Ali • Khadija Benn • Sandra Brewster • Erika DeFreitas • Ingrid Griffith • Natalie Hopkinson • Serena Hopkinson • Dominique Hunter • Maria del Pilar Kaladeen • Maya Mackrandilal Suchitra Mattai • Christie Neptune • Grace Nichols • Keisha Scarville • Michelle Joan Wilkinson

Press

Domenic Rotundo, OPB Blog, On Liminal Spaces, June 19, 2020

Fall 2020 Upcoming ‘Liminal Spaces’ Events

October

Thursday, October 22, 2020 | 2 pm PST | 5 pm EST (online)

Lux Art Institute | Encinitas, California, USA

On AiR: Join Lux Art Institute for a panel discussion about diasporic experiences from women’s perspectives. Curator Grace Aneiza Ali is joined by artists Suchitra Mattai and Claudia Cano in a conversation about the liminal spaces created when people and cultures are left behind. Moderated by Guusje Sanders, Associate Curator, Lux Art Institute.

[RSVP]

Tuesday, October 27, 2020 | 6pm EST (online)

Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, Asian/Pacific/American Institute, Institute of African American Affairs, and Center for Black Visual Culture, New York University, New York City, United States

Indian Narratives of Migration in the Guyanese Diaspora: Join Grace Aneiza Ali (NYU Art & Public Policy), editor of Liminal Spaces: Migration and Women of the Guyanese Diaspora, and contributors, artists Maya Mackrandilal and Suchitra Mattai for a conversation, moderated by Professor Aisha Khan (NYU Anthropology), on Indian narratives of migration in the Guyanese Diaspora and the role of art in telling our migration stories.

[RSVP]

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November

Wednesday, November 11, 2020 | 4pm GMT (online) *

OPB Publishers | Cambridge, UK

Open Book Publishers presents a conversation exploring global Guyanese narratives of migration and the role of art in telling women’s migration stories. Moderated by journalist Carinya Sharples, the Contributors share, through their art, photography, poetry, memoir-essays and curatorial practices, how their experiences of migration from Guyana to global metropolises of London, New York, Toronto, and beyond have indelibly shaped their lives.

Wednesday, November 18, 2020 | 6pm EST (online) *

Caribbean Cultural Center (CCCADI) | New York City, United States

Curators in Conversation: A series dedicated to critical debate, dialogue, and engagement with curators of color committed to the artistic and cultural production of the Afro-Caribbean and its Diaspora. Grace Aneiza Ali will be in conversation with Alberta Whittle.

Thursday, November 19, 2020 | 6pm EST (online) *

South Asian Women’s Creative Collective (SAWCC) | New York City, United States

The South Asian Women’s Creative Collective (SAWCC) is a nonprofit arts organization dedicated to the advancement, visibility, and development of South Asian and Indo-Caribbean womxn by providing a physical and virtual space to profile their creative and intellectual work across disciplines. Moderated by Rashida Abuwala, SAWCC Board Member

December

Wednesday, December 2, 2020 | 4pm EST (online)*

Women and Gender Studies Institute and Caribbean Studies, University of Toronto and the Centre for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, York University, Toronto, Canada

The city of Toronto possesses one of the largest and oldest Guyanese diasporas outside of Guyana. Women and Gender Studies, Caribbean Studies (University of Toronto) and the Centre for Research on Latin America and the Caribbean (York University) present a conversation exploring the Guyanese-Canadian narratives of migration and the role of art in telling women’s migration stories featured in the new book, Liminal Spaces: Migration and Women of the Guyanese Diaspora. The conversation will include Grace Aneiza Ali, Sandra Brewster, Erika DeFreitas, Natalie Hopkinson and Serena Hopkinson.

2021 Upcoming Events

Wednesday, May 5, 2021

Annual International Conference on Indentureship and its Legacies, Ameena Gafoor Institute | London, UK

*links and details forthcoming