May Friedman.
My research looks at unstable identities, including bodies that do not conform to traditional racial and national or aesthetic lines. I blend social work, teaching, research, writing and parenting, often in the same few minutes. I’m passionate about social justice and reality TV (I am firmly in favour of living with contradiction). Recent publications include explorations of fat and fertility, reproduction and parenting, examinations of fat temporalities and writing on the intersections of family and social media platforms such as Instagram. I’m a faculty member in the Ryerson University School of Social Work and Ryerson/York graduate program in Communication and Culture and I happily live in downtown Toronto with my partner and family. When I’m not teaching or writing or watching reality television, I’m likely baking something buttery.
Image description: A black and white photo of May, a brown woman. She is wearing a soft cardigan, chunky necklace, earrings, and has short black curly hair. She is smiling widely while speaking into a microphone.
Ben Barry.
As a fashion activist, educator and researcher, I am devoted to intervening into the fashion system to systemically shift power and design a future where bodies that are currently stigmatized and excluded are instead valued, desired and worthy. I am Chair and Associate Professor of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in the School of Fashion at Ryerson University. When I am not using fashion to end white supremacy and mobilize disability justice, fat liberation and queer futures, I am playing with my dog Apple, experimenting with different eye shadow palettes and hacking up sequin fabric into my newest fantasy.
Image description: A headshot by Akash Rai of Ben Barry, a white gay man. He is wearing a studded black leather vest over a black t-shirt, looking past the camera with a slight smile.
Calla Evans.
I am a PhD student in Communication and Culture at Ryerson University. My current research maps the boundaries of Fat Instagram and explores the activism possibilities of visual social media towards liberation for fat folks. Previously I have explored the intersection of fat studies and fashion studies – and how those at the largest end of the fat spectrum experience a lack of access to social spaces due to limited clothing availability. I am committed to research that blurs the line between academia and activism. In my past life I was a lifestyle and documentary photographer and I supported many non-profit organizations in Toronto through my photography work. I love mountains, water, good food and travelling with my partner.
Image description: A photo of Calla, a fat white woman. She is seated at a cafe table, holding a blue cup of espresso, with a scone, an iPhone, and a latte on the table in front of her. She is wearing a black tshirt, a straw hat over her long blonde hair, and has floral tattoos on both arms. She is looking out the window to the left of the frame, with a relaxed look on her face.
Mindy Stricke.
I am a photographer and socially-engaged artist, and my collaborative practice blends photography, documentary audio, writing, collage, sculpture, and performance. I believe everyone can be creative and has a story to share, so for years I’ve been making work with the public. I love transforming the familiar into something new, helping people connect to themselves and others in the process. Originally from New York, I now make my home in Montréal, and have scandalously decided that the bagels here taste better.
Image description: A photo of Mindy, a white woman. She is wearing a black top and a blue necklace, looking directly at the camera and smiling. She has red curly hair.
All image descriptions were written by Kayla Besse, with support from Calla Evans, May Friedman, and Ben Barry. Kayla is a visibly disabled, cis, white woman. She has worked with Ben and May on various projects related to digital storytelling and relaxed performance, informed by her background in literary disability studies. All descriptions were written with consideration of participants’ preferred physical and social identities. Kayla is indebted to Shannon Finnegan and Bojana Coklyat’s “Alt-Text as Poetry,” which makes image descriptions a work of art all their own.