A Space for Storytelling: Analysing how The Rawiya Collective use photography to create hybrid spaces

The thesis paper provides an analysis of the means in which The Rawiya Collective, as the first collective of all female photojournalists, use their photography to create hybrid spaces “in-between” physical and virtual locations. Through the analysis of various exhibitions curated by The Rawiya Collective, this thesis examines the extent to which photography has helped the collective give back a voice to the misrepresented and the oppressed. Since its assemblage in 2009, The Rawiya Collective’s photography has given back a voice to local culture and become the spoken word of media platforms today. As theoretical pillars to this thesis, Spivak’s thinking on the subordinated gender and more specifically the notion of constructed masculinities, is used to guide the first chapter of analysis on Countering Hegemonic Powers. The latter half of the analysis draws from Bhabha’s Location of Culture, providing a structural base for an analogy between his notion of the “in-between” spaces and...Show moreThe thesis paper provides an analysis of the means in which The Rawiya Collective, as the first collective of all female photojournalists, use their photography to create hybrid spaces “in-between” physical and virtual locations. Through the analysis of various exhibitions curated by The Rawiya Collective, this thesis examines the extent to which photography has helped the collective give back a voice to the misrepresented and the oppressed. Since its assemblage in 2009, The Rawiya Collective’s photography has given back a voice to local culture and become the spoken word of media platforms today. As theoretical pillars to this thesis, Spivak’s thinking on the subordinated gender and more specifically the notion of constructed masculinities, is used to guide the first chapter of analysis on Countering Hegemonic Powers. The latter half of the analysis draws from Bhabha’s Location of Culture, providing a structural base for an analogy between his notion of the “in-between” spaces and The Rawiya Collective’s recreation of their own Third Space. Recent literature and research on gender identity is employed to provide a contemporary approach to Spivak’s notion of the gendered subaltern. Recent works from various scholars in media, communications and human geography is used to put into context the notion of a Third Space in today’s world, allowing for a discussion concerning virtual platforms as new spaces for cultural representation. It is through an analysis of what the subordinated gender and its allocated location for existence within The Rawiya Collective’s work, that an understanding of how Spivak and Bhabha’s theories can be applied to a contemporary context.Show less

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A Space for Storytelling: Analysing how The Rawiya Collective use photography to create hybrid spaces