Quarantine Self-Care Series
Productivity Reframed: Portrait of Katy

The Quarantine Self-Care Series is a multimedia project that highlights
the ways people of color are navigating the nuances of self-care, survival, and new normals as a result of COVID-19 via interview, installation, photos, and video.

KATYTARIKA BARTEL is a queer, mixed race Thai-American photographer and award-winning filmmaker interested in shining light on spaces of in-between. 

When asked the question How do you care for yourself?, they responded: “Growing up, the belief was often instilled in me that any sort of "self care" came secondary to productivity, if it came at all. I was raised to work hard and get ahead. To this day, I think of my mother as one of the hardest working people I know. I remember I would ask her to watch movies with me when I was younger, and she would always have to be doing something while the movie played--knitting, working, cooking--she couldn't sit still or take that time for herself, ever. Even now, at 59, she fills her days in ways I could never keep up with. I think a lot about these narratives of productivity that I think a lot of children of immigrant parents grow up with. They want you to succeed, and that often comes at so many costs to your mental and emotional well-being. As an adult, I've had to really reconcile with what "productivity" can look like. Now more than ever, I am redefining productivity for myself. Instead of doing a dozen photoshoots a week like I used to, I'm productive if I can get out of bed in the morning and make myself a cup of tea. Productivity looks like taking care of myself in these small, but meaningful ways. I love my skincare routine, pressing my hands with ginger lotion into my face and breathing deep. I love hot baths on busy days when it feels like I don't have time to take one. I love going for walks and breathing in warm, fresh air. I love organizing my filing cabinet and getting my freelance financials in order. I love unlearning the idea that taking time for myself means taking time away from what I "could be doing or working on." I am learning and unlearning everyday what self care means to me. And that is beginning to feel very productive.”