Rusia Mohiuddin - "Art is effortlessly political."

Choosing To Create with Desiree Aspiras

“We need to dismantle some of the grand ways in which we think about doing social justice work, doing political work, doing artwork, when it can be a microcosm, a manifestation within ourselves to actualize a desire we have. It doesn't have to be anything more than that. If we do it for ourselves, we're doing it for the world. Because we're a part of that world.”- Rusia Mohiuddin

Rusia Mohiuddin comes from a long line of people in her family who have committed their lives to living in service to others. Her grandfather, Mashiur “Jadu Miah” Rahman, was the father of the Bangladeshi Independence Movement, and her mother Monsura “Mukti” Mohiuddin was a former Member of Parliament who served & fought for poor people both as a historically elected official & as a citizen.

In this episode, we’ll be talking with Rusia about how her family’s values and history influenced her to continue that legacy. She shares with us how approaching her organizing and social justice change work in a more mindful and contemplative way brought her back to her art making. We explore artmaking as a political and spiritual practice, and discuss how both creating art and working towards social change can be powerful acts of alignment with our values and what is most important to us.

See Rusia’s art, printmaking, and calligraphy on Instagram
Based in New York, Rusia is a master trainer, facilitator, coach and a strategist who pioneered the integration of somatics into an organizing framework. Rusia is currently the founder and principal of UP and the founder of Ma Mukti. Her current mission, through Universal Partnership, has been developing a holistic model for social justice change work that places in its center the necessary transformation of social change agents. Rusia brings a unique style to creating pathways for individuals to bring their best selves forward when enacting social change in their organizations & communities. Rusia has also developed a model for coaching social change agents, called Embodied Coaching, that is based on her developed model of embodied leadership.

Find the show notes + transcript on our website: Choosing To Create
Follow us on Instagram: @choosingtocreate
Come join us for a mindful or creative event at: www.deepbreathnetwork.org
And: if you can, please take a minute to subscribe and rate Choosing To Create in this podcast app - you'll help us reach more people to share these insights and conversations.

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Find the show notes + transcript on our website: Choosing To Create
Follow us on Instagram: @choosingtocreate
Come join us for a mindful or creative event at: www.deepbreathnetwork.org
And: if you can, please take a minute to subscribe and rate Choosing To Create in this podcast app - you'll help us reach more people to share these insights and conversations.