Event and Ticketing Details
Dates & Times
Thursday 28 March
6:15 PM - 7:15 PM
In our daily lives, we’re flooded with images and ideas of how our bodies should or shouldn’t be. Many of us struggle with self-acceptance, and when our bodies deviate from what’s considered ‘normal’, we often also struggle with the attitudes of others.
Carly Findlay and Lee Kofman are both authors of new memoirs that examine how our bodies shape who we become, and what it’s like to look different.
Findlay lives with a rare skin condition, ichthyosis; in Say Hello, she provides an honest, thought-provoking account of her daily life, and a manifesto on disability and appearance diversity. Kofman underwent several major operations as a child – for a defective heart, and after a bus accident – which left her with a collection of scars. Imperfect describes how her markings have influenced her life and pushed her to question prevailing beauty myths.
Together, they’ll reflect on their writing about their own bodies, the space between body and self, and the challenges of representation and self-acceptance in a world that’s often skin deep.
This event will be Auslan interpreted.
Readings will be our bookseller for this event.
Featuring
Carly Findlay
Carly Findlay OAM is an award-winning writer, speaker and appearance activist. Her first book, a memoir called Say Hello, was released in January 2019.
Carly edited the anthology Growing Up Disabled in Australia with Black Inc Books. It’s in stores now.
She writes on disability and appearance diversity issues for news outlets including CNN, Vogue, ABC, The Age and Sydney Morning Herald and SBS.
In 2022, Carly provided a testimony at the Disability Royal Commission, speaking about abuse in public spaces. In 2020, Carly Findlay received a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) for her work as a disability advocate and activist.
In 2021, Carly received The Victoria Award for Excellence in Women's Leadership. She was named one of Australia’s most influential women in the 2014 Australian Financial Review and Westpac 100 Women of Influence Awards. She has appeared on ABC TV’s You Can’t Ask That and Cyberhate with Tara Moss, The Project, The CookUp, Studio 10 and The Drum, and has been a regular on various ABC radio programs.
She has spoken at the Melbourne Writers Festival, the University of Western England, Ubud Writers Festival, The Australian Centre for Moving Image and Melbourne University – to name a few. She organised the history-making Access to Fashion in 2018 – a Melbourne Fashion Week event featuring disabled models. She has a Masters of Communication and Bachelor of eCommerce.
Carly identifies as a proud disabled woman – she lives with a rare, severe skin condition, ichthyosis.
View Profile
Lee Kofman
Dr Lee Kofman is a Russian-born, Israeli-Australian novelist, short story writer, essayist, memoirist and former academic based in Melbourne. She is the author of three fiction books (published in Israel in Hebrew) and the memoir The Dangerous Bride (Melbourne University Press 2014). Lee is also the co-editor of Rebellious Daughters (Ventura Press, 2016), an anthology of personal essays by prominent Australian authors. Her short works have been widely published in Australia, USA, Canada, Israel, the UK and Scotland. Lee holds a PhD in social sciences and MA in creative writing, and is a mentor and teacher of writing. She is also a regular public speaker and panel moderator.
Kelli Jean Drinkwater
Kelli Jean Drinkwater is a filmmaker, artist and activist recognised internationally for her creative practice and voice in radical body politics. Kelli Jean uses the body as a site to explore themes of identity, queer and feminist theory and society’s obsession with 'perfection'. Often confrontational, her work aims to investigate the complex relationship we all have with our bodies.
She is an interdisciplinary artist creating within and outside the genres of performance, film and image making.
In 2016, Kelli Jean was asked to present a TedXSydney talk on fat phobia, at the Sydney Opera House, which has received over 1.7 million views.
Kelli Jean has performed, hosted and curated events in London (UK) for Club Antisocial, Duckie and The Place. Recent performances include Force Majeure’s Nothing to Lose for Sydney Festival and Dance Massive at The Malthouse Theatre in Melbourne, Night Craft for MCA’s Artbar, Tableau Vivant for Underbelly Arts Festival, Monsta Gras at The Red Rattler Theatre and Department H in Tokyo. She is a resident artist with The Glitter Militia performance collective in Sydney, Australia.
As Artistic Associate on Force Majeures’ award winning dance theatre production Nothing to Lose, Kelli Jean collaborated with renowned Director Kate Champion. Co-commissioned by Sydney Festival and Carriageworks, the show had sell out seasons for both Sydney Festival and for Dance Massive and The Malthouse Theatre, Melbourne.
Kelli Jean is an award-winning filmmaker working across many roles and genres of storytelling, with a focus on documentary. Her short documentary Aquaporko! (2013), won the Audience Award for Best Documentary at QueerScreen Mardi Gras Film Festival in 2013.
She was the primary editor on The Pink House (2017), directed by Sasha Ettinger-Epstein, which won the Documentary Australia Foundation award for Best Documentary at Sydney Film festivals in 2017.
Kelli Jean directed, edited and wrote Monsta Gras (2018), a short documentary commission for ABC ARTS as part of their Love Bites series.
Nothing to Lose (2018) is Kelli Jean's first feature documentary as director, editor and writer. Now available on SBS ON Demand.