Fluid

In 1970s Hull, a tiny revolution is brewing. Young sex workers find their creativity and independence. Besotted artists perform outrageous stage-shows, and young women discover the beauty of feminism, book clubs, and shower heads. This intersectional collection of short stories paints a picture of a post-hippy, bohemian lifestyle, where punk, art, and abjection meet.

Fluid is an interconnected collection of short-stories, each chapter based on a piece of 1970s artwork containing or alluding to body fluids. All the artistic pieces examined were chosen because they fitted within two categories: they all included the use or suggestion of body fluids, and they were all successful in creating controversy. The artists included are Vivienne Westwood, Mary Kelly, Valie Export, COUM Transmissions, Andy Warhol, David Wojnarowicz, Bas Jan Ader, Dennis Oppenheim, Ana Mendieta, Carolee Schneemann, Judy Chicago, Suicide, Chris Burden, and Jenny Holzer. The chapters bleed together to create a cut-and-paste plot reflecting northern England during a time of social unrest.

Fluid is a story about people and their bodies, their connections to each other, and their unwavering primality.