Land as necessity, land as possibility

The Crip and Queer Seminar series at the Division of Gender Studies is proud to present this lecture by Sara E. Salminen 

This presentation is based on my dissertation unsettling trajectories – thinking queerly with Sámi feminisms, art and archives, which I write as a part of a growing dialogue between gender studies and Sámi studies.

Grounded in Sámi feminist and queer theoretical studies, and by building on the international field of queer Indigenous studies, the thesis explores Nordic settler colonial logics of erasure and their impact on Sámi understandings of gender and sexuality, as well as how the relations between Indigeneity, gender and sexuality are being re-imagined in feminist and queer/trans Sámi art.

In this presentation I will focus on my chapter “land as necessity, land as possibility” which thinks with Outi Pieski’s artistic knowledge production around an important item of duodji, called the ládjogahpir, or the foremother’s hat of pride. Pieski’s art goes along and against settler colonial (knowledge) trajectories, that place Sámi Indigeneity as out of time, and shape the conditions for Sámi feminist and queer (knowledge) struggles in the settler colonial present. By creating resurgent/decolonial soundscapes, Sámi feminist and queer art demonstrates how other worlds can be imagined in the settler colonial dystopian present.

Dr Sara E. Salminen is a postdoctoral scholar who works primarily in the fields of Indigenous feminist, queer and settler colonial studies. Salminen holds a PhD in gender studies and is invested in creative and decolonising methodologies. Salminen’s interdisciplinary thesis unsettling trajectories: thinking queerly with Sámi feminisms, art and archives (2026) is an exploration of settler colonial common sense in academic Nordic feminist and queer thinking, as well as a critical dialogue with Sámi art, Indigenous resurgence and queer theorising.

Accessibility: The room is accessible for wheelchair users (automatic doors, elevator, accessible toilet).

Contact: 

• Elin Lundell elin [dot] lundell [at] genus [dot] lu [dot] se (elin[dot]lundell[at]genus[dot]lu[dot]se)
• Irina Schmitt irina [dot] schmitt [at] genus [dot] lu [dot] se (irina[dot]schmitt[at]genus[dot]lu[dot]se)
   

The Crip & Queer Seminar series is hosted by the Division of Gender Studies. 
After the seminars, which are open to students, staff, and the general public, we serve fika in the kitchen on the fourth floor of Gamla Lungkliniken. 

Warmly welcome!