Speed Date/Moments of Solitude

by Tatenda Shamiso

“I wrote this piece as a response to Goldsmiths senior management’s withholding funds for the Against Sexual Violence Project this year. I think it’s important right now to remember what happens when you live in a community as intersectionally diverse as Goldsmiths is (and loves claiming to be, for the sake of marketing).

Our community is full of young people who are getting to know themselves, who are at Goldsmiths because they feel different and want to be surrounded by difference and innovation. With that heterogeneity, that openness to discovery, comes a responsibility. We must be responsible and accountable to care for ourselves and each other in this community, and to ensure that every member of this community has equal freedom to discover without fear of abuse. We must also protect projects that encourage this idea on an institutional level. 

Speed Date/Moments of Solitude discusses the sensitive and complicated nature of sexuality in a progressive university setting. 

CONTENT WARNING: themes of consent and trauma.”

Tatenda is a multimedia artist, director, writer and musician with origins from Zimbabwe, Belgium, the United States and Switzerland. Central to their work are themes of belonging and identity, particularly internal displacement in terms of gender, race and hybrid culture. They are currently completing their BA in Drama and Theatre Arts at Goldsmiths, and most recently performed in Same Same Collective’s production of ‘drop dead gorgeous’ at the 2020 VAULT Festival.

Instagram: @tatendashamiso