Tiphaine Girault, SPiLL.PROpagation

Deconstructing Phonocentrism: Sign Language Rights, Accessibility and the Arts

Delta Hotel

Saturday, September 23, 2017 - 11am-12pm

ABOUT THE PROJECT

In May of 2014, eleven Deaf artists from across Canada met in Gatineau to reflect on how their artistic knowledge and practices have been impacted by logocentrism, the presumed stability of meanings, and phonocentrism, the historical subordination of sign language in relation to spoken language. What transpired was not only the discovery of new ways to conceptualize their professional practice, but their personal identities, and everyday life.

This presentation by Tiphaine Girault of SPiLL.PROpagation will provide a descriptive summary of the philosophical and theoretical underpinnings of phonocentrism and discuss how language plays an important part in guaranteeing basic human rights and reinforcing social equality. The presenters will use an interactive and artistic process to resituate its participants in the locus of this radical paradigm shift before embarking on a journey to redesign the arts sector from a sign languages rights perspective.