As an artist, I am interested in embodiment, materiality, participation, and the ways institutional systems are experienced through the body. Accessibility is often discussed through physical infrastructure; however, many barriers to participation are emotional, social, financial, cultural, or psychological. Feelings of anxiety, imposter syndrome, disability, neurodivergence, caring responsibilities, financial pressures, and cultural expectations can all affect an individual's ability to fully participate in higher education and contemporary art practice. The accessible toilet presents a unique site through which these issues can be explored. It is a space explicitly designed around access, privacy, care, and bodily needs, yet it often remains overlooked within institutional environments. By transforming this space into a participatory artwork, The Loo-vre invites reflection on what access means beyond compliance and how institutions might better support diverse experiences.
The project aims to:
· Explore accessibility as a social, emotional, and cultural experience.
· Create opportunities for students and staff to contribute their own perspectives.
· Make invisible barriers visible.
· Foster dialogue around belonging within art education.
· Generate a welcoming and reflective intervention within the university environment.
· Develop a model for socially engaged and participatory practice within WSA.
The project is guided by the following questions:
· What prevents people from fully participating in arts education?
· What helps people feel safe, supported, and valued?
· How is accessibility experienced differently by different individuals?
· How can artistic practice contribute to institutional change?
· What might a culture of care look like within an art school?
The project will:
· Create a meaningful site-specific artwork.
· Generate dialogue around accessibility and inclusion.
· Produce an archive of lived experiences from the WSA community.
· Extend discussions of participation beyond the studio and gallery.
· Contribute to ongoing conversations around wellbeing, belonging, and institutional culture.
The installation will be developed through a one-day participatory workshop involving:
· Students/Artists
· Patrons
· Staff/Volunteers
· Local community members
Participants will contribute written reflections, drawings, symbols, signs, and messages responding to prompts about belonging, accessibility, and participation. These contributions will become the foundation of the final artwork.