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RECOVERIST CULTURE FIX: Read our latest blog

The Whitworth gallery

Past Project

In a new blog, Chanje Kunda reflects about her first experience of attending the Recoverist Culture Club, on being a successful artist in recovery, representation of queer women, and the synchronicity of finding an opportunity to work with Portraits of Recovery on the collaborative Recovery Month commission outcome at just the right time.

Chanje attended the Recoverist Culture Fix event on 27th May 2023 with Sober Gay Socials. This series of events is open to all LGBT+ people with a desire for change and/or in recovery from substance use. Our recoverists enjoyed a guided tour of the (Un)Defining Queer exhibition at The Whitworth gallery, led by curator, Dominic Bilton. 

Attendees were also introduced to the work of Manchester-based artist Jez Dolan, including details of how to get involved with his new commission for Recovery Month (September 2023).

As part of September 2023 International Recovery Month, Portraits of Recovery have commissioned Jez to work with members of Sober Gay Socials to explore ideas and barriers to alternative Queer sober, social provision for LGBT+ people in recovery. The collaboratively produced creative outcome will be presented at the Whitworth Gallery this September.

 

I felt good to be in a queer space celebrating queer identity and looking at queer art.

RECOVERIST CULTURE FIX: my experience

MY NAME IS Chanje Kunda and I am what is known in recovery circles as a ‘High Bottom Drunk’. 

This doesn’t mean that I spend a lot of time working on my glutes at the gym and happen to like a drink as well. It actually means that when I hit my own personal ‘rock bottom’ with alcohol, I hadn’t lost everything. Think ‘Ant’ from Ant and Dec. He publicly admitted to having issues with alcohol but was not what you might stereotypically think of as a ‘park bench’ drunk. Alcoholics come in all shapes and sizes and of all socio-economic backgrounds.  

I am a Poet, Playwright and Performance Artist. My sobriety date is 11th Feb 2021. I have presented my work nationally and internationally, including at the Southbank, London 2016, The National Arts Festival of South Africa 2016, and the Harare International Festival of Arts, Zimbabwe 2017. Other international representation includes selection by the British Council for IETM conferences in Romania 2017 and Croatia 2019. 

In addition to my live performance work, I have produced films for a variety of commissioners including short film ‘Physics’ for BBC Verb New Voices (2015), and ‘I Can’t Breathe’ for Word of Warning (2016). In 2020 I produced 3 short films: 

  • ‘Kintsugi Gold’ commissioned by and premiered at DadaFest International Festival, and went on to be screened on The British Museum’s Online programme and in cinemas at the Aesthetica Short Film Festival in York.
  • ‘Toilet Roll Gate Retrospective’ commissioned for and streamed by Manchester International Festival
  • ‘Victory is Yours’ commissioned for and streamed by the Imperial War Museum.

LIKE MANY OTHERS, I hit bottom in lockdown and went into recovery. For over 2 years I have not had a drink or any mind-altering substance. I am enjoying my sobriety which has included buying my dream car, being discharged from the community mental health team, having better physical health, better relationships, and self-esteem, including travel to the Caribbean on a 5-week dream.  

I am a bisexual woman who is currently in a monogamous relationship with a woman. I attended a Sober Gay Socials event with a friend and was then invited to the (Un)Defining Queer talk at the Whitworth Art Gallery. 

The synchronicity is that as a performance artist, I have been saying that I want to create digital performance pieces for gallery spaces. And then happened to be invited to this talk. At the event I was also introduced to Portraits of Recovery for the first time, which was really exciting. They said it's hard to find professional artists working in recovery, and I thought…well, I will soon put that right for you. What a great opportunity. 

THE TRUTH OF THE MATTER is that we in the UK live in a society where social situations centre around drinking. Festivals, concerts, theatre, gallery openings, restaurants, barbecues, holidays, even dating!!! All feature alcohol. So, as a clean and sober person...it’s a bit of a pain to navigate, although I do it quite successfully. 

Being sober and in recovery can have a positive effect, like having the potential to work with Portraits of Recovery. This really lights me up, and makes me happy. It’s not something I have to navigate carefully, but something I can jump for joy about!!  

The (Un)Defining Queer tour had more male participants, more male focused artworks and a male curator. I don’t know if there are less women in recovery. Or whether because women have been brought up in a patriarchal society, they are less empowered to take up space in the public domain. Anyway, I felt good to be there, representing queer women, if you like. I felt good to be in a queer space celebrating queer identity and looking at queer art. 

THE MOST EXCITING THING about the whole event for me was being invited to participate in the Jez Dolan commission, future workshop activities and contributing to the final outcome to be shown this September at the Whitworth. Alongside this there is the potential for developing a relationship with Portraits of Recovery as a professional artist.  

I create digital art and am interested in artistic creation of the moving image for gallery spaces. That’s what excites me. And with the advent of iPhones and smart phones, making your own films has never been so accessible. The quality of the work you can produce is surprising. So here’s to what is to come. Who knows???

If you want to find our more about Chanje Kunde's art practice, or get in contact with her, visit her website. 

The truth of the matter is is that we in the UK live in a society that socialises around drinking. Festivals, concerts, theatre, gallery openings, restaurants, barbecues, holidays, even dating!!! All feature alcohol. As a clean and sober person… it’s a bit of a pain to navigate, although I do it successfully. So, when my sobriety and being a person in recovery can have a positive effect, like having an opportunity to work with Portraits of Recovery, it really lights me up, and makes me happy. It’s not something I have to navigate carefully, but something I can jump for joy about!!

Huge thanks to Dominic Bilton, curator of (Un)Defining Queerness for organising the tour. You can visit the exhibition until 3rd December 2003. More information here.