It's 2075. Barriers as we know them now no longer exist. Let fellow RMIT students show you that world.
Teleport into futures imagined by RMIT's emerging change makers, students Xerophytis, Nat Vigo and Enixy. Immerse yourself in their possible realities for tomorrow and beyond.
The background image shows my character underwater. The coral reef in the foreground reflects diversity of human experience. Sometimes living with disability feels like living in an underwater city where everyone else was born with a snorkel. It can feel like we are screaming into the void as we fight for disability rights - drowned out by ableism. Here I've used this metaphor for a future beyond these limitations.
In The Future is an animated short exploring the possibilities of an inclusive future, where those with disabilities can be easily accommodated and how we can freely be independent without restrictions. I was inspired by retro games in their simplicity and cross-hatch shading. The decision to choose animals for characters brings home the idea that anyone can live with disability, regardless of their background, and that disability is unique to every individual.
What would your ideal urban space for rest and recovery be? Picture people unwinding, reading, or napping—taking a moment to disconnect from the city’s hustle and bustle. Rest would be celebrated as an essential part of life, and one that’s vital to the future of humanity.
The student artists were commissioned by RMIT Creative Student Life to present video works as part of the We Belong: Beyond accessibility art project.
Their works were seeded during a roundtable series designed to platform the voices of students who are D/deaf, Disabled, and living with disability. The roundtables explored the student's experience on a university campus, sensory experiences of belonging, community building, and collective dreams of crip futurity.
Date: 2 - 19 October
Locations:
Celebrate at Alter State. An award-winning arts initiative redefining Disabled Futures. Curated by a community of Australia's Deaf and Disabled leading artmakers. RMIT is proud to be aligned and included in Alter State 2024 theme, Disabled Futures: A glimpse of what's to come. The program includes a free, 2-day Symposium at Arts centre Melbourne, consisting of curated conversations with artist keynotes and panel discussions highlighting Deaf and Disabled artists.
Artwork illustration by Nat Vigo.
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Acknowledgement of Country
RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business - Artwork 'Sentient' by Hollie Johnson, Gunaikurnai and Monero Ngarigo.
