Florentina Holzinger, Mamela Nyamza and Mathilde Invernon are key artists in La Bâtie’s 2024 programme. In their performances, each addresses the question of the body and its representation in society and in the performing arts. Whereas Holzinger’s work draws on ideas of identity and sexual and physical transgression to deconstruct hegemonic images of femininity, Nyamza’s focuses on body politics and the representation of the body to demystify and deconstruct the history of dance. As for Mathilde Invernon, her work focuses on gender stereotypes linked to the body in the public space. Larissa Tiki Mbassi also takes up these themes in her work as a researcher and curator. She is interested in understanding strategies of remembrance and self-representation in the visual and performing arts. In particular, she has worked with a number of ethnographic museums on the ways in which black women's bodies have been staged and reduced to the status of objects. The round table will be moderated by Nayansaku Mufwankolo, lecturer in Cultural Studies and Critical Theory, and Delegate for Inclusivity at the Geneva University of Art and Design (HEAD).

How do these representations help to question gender stereotypes?  How can we overcome the clichés associated with women’s bodies in the performing arts?