The idea came about two years ago when Juskowski attended Femme Agenda meetings hosted by Lutze Segu for the Miami Workers Center. The meetings helped to build a multigenerational,
From those first meetings, Juskowski, who is also the founder and creative director of Miami Girls, started to think about privilege in connection to household labor, how personal domestic labor is, and how differently it affects people of different social classes or genders. “My biggest 'aha' moment was the realization that women who perform household work as a job, at the end of the day go back home to their own unpaid household work. They are literally
“The beauty of the domestic work for me is connected to hardship. I grew up in the early '90s in Russia, and I remember when my family didn’t have a washing machine, how tedious and hard doing laundry was, and that it would last all day,” said Juskowski. “But I also remember the bliss of helping, seeing the sheets and clothes hanging, and the smell of detergent, the beauty of all of it. My installation is designed to bring people back to that feeling of bliss but to also educate them about the hardships attached to the issue.”
The project will enlist 100 Miami-area participants to commit 30 minutes of work in Lummus Park, hanging white sheets on clotheslines, doing and undoing their labor. Each participant will leave the installation as it was found, allowing the next person to come in and perform the same task, and the community will be able to co-create and learn and enter the conversations and participate in the art. Additionally, Daniela Cava and Michael Gongora will perform during the event.
“I want to raise funds and awareness and educate people because most of us don’t think about or honor the women who perform the domestic work daily. At the same time, we’re also committed to changing this work, by personally honoring someone or taking the pledge to promote the value by raising up the community,” said Jukowski.
The donations will be used for an emergency and empowerment Thrive Fund managed by the household workers and will help women with medical emergencies, injuries, administrative disputes, and more. Already several organizations such as the Miami-Dade County Commission for Women, Women’s Fund, United Teachers of Miami-Dade, New Florida Majority, and the Dream Defenders have taken the pledge, but more participants are needed.
To take the pledge, donate, or sign up to participate in #NeverNotWorking, visit miamigirls.org.
Untitled, Miami Beach. Wednesday, December 5, through Sunday, December 9, on the beach along Ocean Drive at 12th Street, Miami Beach; 646-405-6942; untitledartfairs.com. Tickets cost $25 to $35 and are free to children under 12.