Jo Spence's Final Project: A Dialectical Mode of Dying

In her 2016 article for Afterall Journal 42, Anne Boyer analyzes Jo Spence's Final Project (1991–92), created during her battle with leukaemia. Renowned for her politically charged self-portraits and phototherapy that tackled issues of class, gender, and illness, Spence ceased to feature herself in her work during her last months. Instead, she crafted 'post-reality' still lifes and layered archival images, frequently using a skeleton in place of her own form. Boyer posits that these pieces delve into the boundaries of identity politics and representation amid terminal illness. Unlike her earlier works, such as Cancer Shock (1982) and The Picture of Health? (1982–86), which presented her breast cancer candidly, the Final Project employs decay and symbolic elements to reflect the fading of social identifiers. Boyer links this evolution to a larger crisis in political art, referencing Spence's reflections on fatigue and depoliticization, alongside Johanna Hedva's 'Sick Woman Theory.' Ultimately, Boyer suggests that Spence's later creations, while moving away from earlier instructive approaches, pave the way for a new understanding of politics beyond mere identity.