Hello! We’re Emily & Eden, two friends who share a love of art. Over the years we’ve written, edited and published essays, run educational workshops and created learning resources under the name MEDUSA. Now we’re turning back to our first love: cultural criticism. Hopefully we know a thing or two. You can read our work here or on Substack! Thanks for being a part of the journey.
EDEN SZYMURA
I’m a writer and arts worker whose practice sits somewhere in life-writing, autotheory, diary-keeping and experimental prose.
My writing is heavily informed by art, gender and popular culture. One of my least favourite activities is trying to define my work: over the years I’ve written everything from thirst rambles about Paul Mescal memes to critical essays on Rodin. I recently devoured Heated Rivalry in one sitting, have Jen Calleja’s Vehicle on my bedside table, and will never get over seeing Rina Sawayama and her four outfit changes live at Glastonbury 2023. I hold a BA in English Literature from Durham University and an MA in Creative Writing (New Prose Narratives) from Royal Holloway.
Economic stability for me looks like jobs in communications, visitor experience and education in public art galleries, museums and universities.
You can find a portfolio of my work on my website and find me more regularly on my newsletter and Instagram.
EMILY ELLOWAY WALTERS
Fascinated by the intersections of art and activism, cultural memory and curation, Emily Elloway Walters is a linguist, writer and editor. Having studied German, French and Visual Culture whilst working in creative events management, much of her writing is centred on identity, connection and the arts.
Amongst other recent work, she has reviewed the RA’s Summer Exhibition and Elisa Shua Dusapin’s ‘The Pachinko Parlour’ for Lucy Writers. Her essay on the interplay of censorship, feminine agency and the art of protest within Ireland’s Referendum to Repeal the Eighth Amendment was published in the Centre for Visual Arts and Culture Journal.
As part of her MA she discovered her love of curation – interning at mima during their preparations for Fragile Earth, an exhibition on ecology and the urgent, collective need to protect our planet, as well as co-curating Time, Perception, Environment, an exploration of slowness through Durham University’s art collection.
From her perspective, the core of feminism is advocating equality, speaking out against injustice and dismantling oppressive structures of power. Incited by Cixous’ vision, she hopes for MEDUSA to be an inclusive, creative space, always seeking to encompass a plurality of perspectives.
Featured artwork: Apollo and Daphne, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1625
MEDUSA 