Zoe and Squishy Moon are furiously at work making Octopussy, your personal monument to vulvas everywhere. We caught up with them and asked about the project:
The Octopussy is a large steel and fabric sculpture that is a celebration of vulvas, octopuses, and textile arts. It’s an octagonal shape, and each of the eight sides boasts a unique 1m x 2m vulva, nestled between eight giant tentacles. An opening in each vulva acts as an entrance way to a central chamber, a lush womb-like space infused with an underwatery queefy soundscape. Each vulva is a textile creation by different members of the Kiwiburn community. So far we have an elderly puss, an oceanic vajayjay, a kawaii cooch, a sex worker fanny, and an FGM vulva. Modalities being used so far are crochet, sewing, and mixed media.
Why are we doing this? Well, The Octopussy is the weird lovechild of Zoe and Squishy Moon, two powerful women, and their supportive friends, allies, and community. Textile arts traditionally have been associated with people who have vulvas, and are traditionally undervalued in mainstream arts. In addition to this, octopuses are some of the weirdest, most beautiful, most diverse, and most mysterious creatures on the planet, so they have a lot in common with vulvas in that regard! Because there is no one way to have a vulva, we aim for each vulva to be created by a different maker, showcasing the diversity and collaboration of textile artists within our community.
In terms of progress, we had a burst of super-organised activity following the approval of two Kiwiburn art grants to make this project a reality, however the events of 2020 have understandably compressed our timeline somewhat! Due to this we are currently in desperate need of collaborators who can help create three unique vulvas before the deadline on the 18 January! We’re particularly interested in hearing from anyone with a project idea for a vulva that acknowledges diversity – this could be from the light-hearted to the serious. Anyone who is interested or curious should email Zoe at zoedev87@gmail.com.
If you want to stay updated about the project, you can also follow our Facebook page for “The Octopussy”!
