Joya: AiR / Zelda Solomon / ENG

‘The advice that was passed onto me about Joya: AiR was to not focus too much on planning something specific, but to respond once you’re there. I found that a daunting prospect because that meant I would have to relinquish a lot of control. I then wrestled with how I could even begin to bring my culturally specific practice to Velez Blanco and Joya: AiR in a way that didn’t read as ownership.

Genuinely listening and responding to the surroundings and my place within them proved to be the best route I could have taken in that respect. The landscape and its stories; Simon and Donna’s embedded practice; and the other artists I am so grateful to have met inspired me a great deal in ways I never could have anticipated. I’m glad I was present with it all, because the work I produced from that space of awareness was surprising and spilled out with ease. I often find myself circling the same familiar buoys in my writing and wider work, and Joya: AiR pushed me to welcome more in.

Much of Joyas magic is credit to Simon and Donna, who have facilitated such a rare creative environment without a trace of competition or judgment. And particular thanks to Sophie, Aga and Amber who made my time there so special. It’s an experience I’ll treasure for years to come’.

Zelda Solomon

Zelda completed her undergraduate degree in History of Art at Edinburgh University in 2021 and has recently completed an MA in Race, Media and Social Justice at Goldsmiths College, London. Her undergraduate dissertation focused on the Asian cyborg within the context of Anti-Asian hate crimes in response to coronavirus, and a condensed, fictionalised version of her research that utilised the screenplay-format was recently published by Peanut Press, Edinburgh, and can be found here :https://www.peanutpress.co.uk/product-page/taking-over-by-zelda-solomon.

She has been freelance writing non-fiction for a number of years now, and was previously the Culture and Politics editor for Woman to Woman and was previously a creative copywriter for Agora Digital -- a digital platform that profiles female and non-binary people working in Digital and New Media art. She is now editing for independent publisher 9vtbackslash5’s new queer poetry anthology. Additionally she was the BAMER Liberation officer for her student theatre and sat on the Deconolonising the Curriculum board for the Edinburgh College of Art.
While her interests lie primarily in anti-racism and writing, she has also worked with theatre, film and performance. During the pandemic, she created a short film with her co-producer Camilla Anvar for the RUMAH@Khai all-Asian showcase exploring Asian-ish identity, which can be found here : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSyBCs1oLm0&t=12s. She also received funding from Edinburgh University to put on her own satirical exhibition with live performance art in 2020, and recently made a short film to support an essay for her masters which can be found here : https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/666002988.

Joya: playlist / Zelda Solomon