Buy Shy Radicals book here: bookworks.org.uk/publishing/shop/shy-radicals-the-antisystemic-politics-of-the-militant-introvert-2017-fourth-edition-2020/
The presentation looks the roots of Ahsan book “Shy Radicals: the Antisystemic Miltant Introvert” with the revival of DIY and zine subcultures. At the centre of the book, expanding into a wider ongoing conceptual art project is Aspergistan - a utopic horizon for the liberation struggle of shy, quiet, introverted, or awkward people, and people on the autism spectrum. How were the aesthetics of guerillas and underground insurgency movement adopted by the book?
How does DIY and zine culture unsettle existing languages of power, inclusion, accessibility, diversity and equality? How does the attitude of this subculture resisting bureaucracy and technocrat mirror itself in the style and formats of Shy Radicals. How Neurodivergent zine creators as a way of subvert knowledge-power axis. How did DIY Culltures festival form new alliances and coalitions? How were theatre formats such as the long table readapted for neurodiversity. The talk will also explore the critical concepts of the book were adopted and extended into other art works and the trial of fan fiction.
Bio
Hamja Ahsan is an artist, writer, activist and curator based in London and Maastricht. He is the author of the book Shy Radicals: Antisystemic Politics of the Militant Introvert, recently made into a film by Ridley Scott Creative Group director Tom Dream. He was recently awarded the Grand Prize at Ljubljana Biennial 2019 for the artwork Aspergistan Referendum based on this project. He is founder and co-curator of the DIY Cultures festival of creative activism, zines and independent publishing since 2013. He was shortlisted for the Liberty human rights award for Free Talha Ahsan campaign on extradition and detention without trial under the War on Terror. His recent writing was anthologised in Awkwards No Colour Bar: Black Art in Action 1960-1990. He has presented art projects at PS1 MOMA New York Art book week, Tate Modern, Gwangju Biennale, Shaanakht festival Pakistan, Bethlam Gallery, Autism Arts Festival and and CCA Warsaw Poland. His practice encompasses all media: conceptual writing, building archives, performance, video, sound and making zines. He is currently a resident artist at Jan Van Eyck Academy 2020-2021 in Netherlands. He is on the editorial board of the Radical Mental Health magazine Asylum.