Aunties with swag
July 8, 2014 9:47 PM Subscribe
Upping the Aunty, a photography project by Indian-born, Toronto-raised artist Meera Sethi
More about the project: "In South Asian culture, an aunty may or may not be a biological relation. She may be a friend of the family or a stranger. But if she is older than you – old enough to be your mother’s friend – then she is accorded the status of aunty. Neither our mothers nor part of our peer group, aunties may be trusted confidantes or gatekeepers of social decorum. With the new work, I will pay homage to the fabulousness of aunty style and the importance of their role as transmitters of social and cultural knowledge and practices."
More about the project: "In South Asian culture, an aunty may or may not be a biological relation. She may be a friend of the family or a stranger. But if she is older than you – old enough to be your mother’s friend – then she is accorded the status of aunty. Neither our mothers nor part of our peer group, aunties may be trusted confidantes or gatekeepers of social decorum. With the new work, I will pay homage to the fabulousness of aunty style and the importance of their role as transmitters of social and cultural knowledge and practices."
Aunties rock the lush textiles.
posted by Lou Stuells at 10:23 PM on July 8, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Lou Stuells at 10:23 PM on July 8, 2014 [1 favorite]
Seems to be something vaguely similar in the Southeast US. Your mother's best girlfriends would often be designated as "Aunt Foo" not "Ms Foo", and if you got out of line they'd chastise you just like your mother would, and you knew it. I'm not a sociologist, but they seem to serve equal parts someone to talk to who's a safe adult but not your parents and an example for interpersonal relationships less formal than parent-child. Many a first alcoholic drink is provided by an aunt.
posted by kjs3 at 10:30 PM on July 8, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by kjs3 at 10:30 PM on July 8, 2014 [1 favorite]
Gatekeepers of social decorum, lol.
I got married when I was broke and still in college. The plan was to rent a hall and a group of friends would cater it for us. My mom approached an auntie of mine who owned a restaurant about renting her place, but instead she generously gave us the use of it on her closed day. We brought all the supplies, our dear friends cooked, the reception went off swell. At the end of the evening, auntie searched my friends ' handbags for silverware.
I think we're even.
posted by BinGregory at 1:30 AM on July 9, 2014 [3 favorites]
I got married when I was broke and still in college. The plan was to rent a hall and a group of friends would cater it for us. My mom approached an auntie of mine who owned a restaurant about renting her place, but instead she generously gave us the use of it on her closed day. We brought all the supplies, our dear friends cooked, the reception went off swell. At the end of the evening, auntie searched my friends ' handbags for silverware.
I think we're even.
posted by BinGregory at 1:30 AM on July 9, 2014 [3 favorites]
yeah it's a great concept but doesn't talk about the culture of Aunties at all much.
posted by sweetkid at 7:24 AM on July 9, 2014
posted by sweetkid at 7:24 AM on July 9, 2014
Neat find, thanks for posting! Since it does focus mostly on style, I'd like to leave another link here that celebrates older women's fashion sense - advancedstyle.
posted by travelwithcats at 8:48 AM on July 9, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by travelwithcats at 8:48 AM on July 9, 2014 [1 favorite]
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posted by BinGregory at 10:05 PM on July 8, 2014 [2 favorites]