How do you tackle the challenge of being a full-time creative after years of structured work?

That's the question Tindara Sidoti-McNary is wrangling with after leaving teaching to return to a full-time art practice. After all, timing is everything - a chance encounter meant soon after moving to Margate she had met fellow artist Catrin Osborne and embarked upon an exciting journey with the Arts Council-funded show, This Is What The Menopause Looks Like.

We talk about her supportive boss in her architecture and engineering job who backed her decision to do an MA and even read her dissertation, a shared family obsession with film and why body image is a big theme in her work.

Born in London to parents who moved to the UK from Sicily in 1968, Tindara has been fascinated by art and film since childhood. She makes video art and films exploring issues such as body image and menopause. She is a socialist, feminist and fat activist who loves cats, Spurs and hip hop. 

If you're into the joy of combining different art forms and collaborations and how creativity leads to connection and community, this episode is for you.

You can find Tindara on Twitter and Instagram as @olivemcdoti and watch her films here:

Making bodies

https://youtu.be/60QUnpyAJC8

Making the change 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XX5pus0WS2w

Tindara is an associate artist of https://osborneandwhat.co.uk/

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Happy listening!