ADLab Webinar: The situated/spatial ethics of dementia activism research (Professor Ruth Bartlett, VID Specialised University )

Time and place: April 30, 2021 1:15 PM–2:30 PM CET, Zoom Webinar

Abstract 

In this talk I plan to outline and reflect on some of the situated ethics of my dementia activism work.  Situated ethics are the dilemmas encountered during the research process – typically, they are linked to relational dynamics and are not foreseeable.  Given ADLab’s interests, I will focus on the situated ethics encountered during the No Limits| Reimagining Life with Dementiaproject, which was about using art to mediate the agency of people with dementia who campaign for social change.  The project was based on the concept of ‘Speakers Corner’ and sought to explore the individual and collective strength of people with dementia through a touring exhibition.  The exhibition included a specially commissioned documentary film Agnes & Nancy, and set of bespoke banners by an installation artist, capturing images and thoughts around dementia activism.  The project was highly collaborative and experimental in design and involved professional artists and people with dementia and their spouse/care partner.  I will share and reflect on three particular ‘emotional moments’ for me during this project,  all of which relate to the situated, or more specifically, spatial and material dimensions of the process.  For background reading, I’d suggest my article on Visualising Dementia Activism and this article by Phillip Carter called Ethics and research: A situated and relational approach. 

Agnes & Nancy

This film was commissioned by Ruth Barlett (University of Southampton) and Caroline Hick (University of Bradford) as part of the No Limits - Re-imagining Life With Dementia exhibition which took place in Bradford & Glasgow at the end of 2011.

https://vimeo.com/32903503

Bio

Ruth Bartlett is a Professor in Health Studies at VID Specialised University, Oslo and an Associate Professor in Ageing and Health Research at the University of Southampton.  Ruth has a Masters in Cultural Politics and Sociology PhD.  Her research interests are crosscutting, involving persons with a dementia, citizenship, ageing, disability and inclusive methodologies.  She has over 50 research publications including four books Life at Home for People with a Dementia (with Tula Brannelly); Diary Method (with Christine Milligan); Broadening the Dementia Debate: Towards social citizenship(with Deborah O’Conner); and Everyday Citizenship and People with Dementia (co-edited with Ann-Charlotte Nedlund and Charlotte Clarke). 

Panelists

The lecture will be followed by a panel discussion with:

Larry Gardiner: founding member of the European Working Group for People with Dementia.  Larry had been involved in advising UK parliamentarians as a lay associate member of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Dementia. In this capacity he contributed to the 2019 report entitled ‘Hidden no more - Dementia and disability’ presented to government by the UK Alzheimer’s Society. 

Lilli Mittner: Postdoc at ADLab, explores dementia through situated art intervention research.

Ann Therese Lotherington: Professor in social sciences researching how to promote interaction and integration in society without standardizing ways of living.

Contact

Please contact Lilli Mittner if you have any questions. 

Organizer 

Artful Dementia Research Lab