Teresia Vigil Lundahl

Sexuality, Consent and Relationships from an Artistic and Salutogenic Perspective

Teresia Vigil Lundahl – Fryshusets Gymnasium, Stockholm, Sweden

Abstract:

How can we work with sexuality, consent and relationships in schools in a way that is inclusive, artistic and salutogenic? This area of knowledge lies in the tension between the school’s mission of knowledge and values, and this is clearly stated in the new curriculum for both primary and secondary schools in Sweden. The #metoo movement has opened up our awareness of power, boundaries, aesthetics and interplay in relation to artistic processes. The embodiment of all kinds of art forms can help us to understand boundaries, sexuality and communication. Hopefully this will make artistic and aesthetic processes more democratic for all participants. This research project explores different ways of working with consent, boundaries, communication and power in artistic and aesthetic processes using A/R/Tography as a methodology. All artistic expressions involve physical practice, and when the body is activated to imagine and create, we can more easily connect with ourselves. Art and sexuality are what Maslov calls “peak experiences”, and because they create a state of consciousness that is characterised by euphoria and bliss, they are a great way to explore our identity. Interdisciplinary studies show that artistic practices and expressions will play a greater role in creating sustainable societies that are experienced as meaningful and developmental for all. Professor Boijer Horwitz writes that when we explore our identity through emotion, play and creativity, we strengthen our self-esteem and competence in different ways. The salutogenic perspective means that the focus is on what makes people and organisations function well and in good health, rather than on what makes them sick and dysfunctional. In the school environment, this can be about how we can work to strengthen students’ sense of context and meaning in school, how we can strengthen and maintain students’ physical, psychological and spiritual well-being.