Tanya charles
Tanya is a feminist activist and the Program and Impact Lead on Fellow Engagement at the Atlantic Institute. In this role, she supports the work of fellows across the seven programmes by co-creating spaces and platforms for collective thinking around solutions which are not ahistorical and lift the socio-economic dimension.
Previously, she worked as an independent gender and human rights consultant for non-profits in Southern Africa, providing a range of services from designing bespoke training sessions on gender equality in the mining sector to address the gender norms and forms of socialisation that impede women from doing what is considered 'men's work' and to form strategies on how to tackle gender-based violence nationally.
Tanya has written about violence against women for Huffpost Women, published research reports on the linkages between policy and sexuality with the Institute of Development Studies in the U.K, and is currently a voluntary Founding Board Member of Vuka Zimbabwe, an NGO that exists to unlock the potential of Zimbabwe’s youth through training and skills development.
Tanya holds an MPhil in Justice and Transformation from the University of Cape Town, as well as undergraduate and honours degrees in Social Anthropology and Media Studies. In 2019, as part of her Atlantic Fellowship, Tanya completed an MSc in Inequalities and Social Science at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Entangled Threads: Qhawe lamaQhawe
This artwork was inspired by the idea of radical joy. Tanya feels that, often, women from the Global South are not afforded the space to express vulnerability and exist as multifaceted beings; when the narrative is so often focused, suffering and oppression being joyful is viewed as a political act. This piece is a representation of the song Rebel Woman by Chiwoniso, inspired by a poem about the role of women in Zimbabwe’s war for independence. It’s about struggle and sacrifice but is also a tribute to strong women that do not follow society’s rules. To create this piece, Nicola Green generated a sound wave of Rebel Woman, which has been transformed into an abstract design, using embroidered golden threads to evoke a burst of radiant sunshine.
Tapestry: Zimbabwe-Mozambique
This artwork was inspired by another song chosen by Tanya - Thomas Mapfumo’s Zimbabwe-Mozambique - an anthem of Pan-African solidarity. Nicola has used the same technique to generate a sound wave, but for this piece, it forms part of a vibrant and playful pattern. This has been loosely inspired by the bold lines and bright colours of Mozambican capulana textiles which often play an important role in women’s lives. Capulana have a role as markers of identity and belonging, as holders of memories, and as heirlooms passed down from mother to daughter. This motif has been re-imagined resembling a vinyl record, further evoking the embodiment of music and movement. Nicola and Tanya wanted this artwork to emphasise the need for unfiltered and boundless radical joy.
