RG Roy

About

Radessa Gladys Roy (b. 1993) is a Filipino-Australian artist whose work and research are informed by her own experiences dealing with complex trauma, and using slow artmaking as a cathartic and ritualistic way to enact the healing process.

A BCA Honours graduate at the University of Wollongong, her thesis, "With Every Fibre of My Being: Handling Silent Trauma through Slow Textile Making", posited that the slow and repetitive qualities of her predominant medium needle-felting is an intuitive way for people to articulate their trauma in ways that words cannot.

Currently, Radessa is applying her research practically in person-centred aged care as a lifestyle officer. It is her aim to directly inspire and support elderly Australians in residential aged care fulfil their emotional well-being, particularly those effected from isolation during the current pandemic, through activities such as craft. In time, she hopes to develop a career in diversional therapy, to help all people in need of emotional support through textile art.

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PUBLICATIONS

With Every Fibre Of My Being: Handling Silent Trauma Through Slow-Textile Making

Presented as part of the requirement for the conferral of the degree: Bachelor of Creative Arts (Honours) at the University of Wollongong.
October 2019.

According to psychiatric studies, verbal recollection of trauma can be a debilitating task which may cause further distress. This honours project investigates how the slow textile method of needle-felting can articulate the silenced voice of trauma through touch. The catalyst of the project stems from my personal experiences with complex trauma and the lack of language to process and express traumatic memories. This research project is motivated by my desire to recover, regain, and strengthen my own voice through the non-verbal language of art. My research asks: how can slow textiles provide the transactive means to respond to silenced trauma through touch in a contemporary art context?

This thesis is completed in conjunction with Kalag, a BCA Hons. art exhibition.