Other Others: Rehearsals in the Skin

Touch Praxis presents other others // rehearsals in the skin, a four-day exhibition and programming series held at Human Resources Los Angeles. This programming offers a collision of fleshy proximities, felt theory (Dian Million, 2009) and porous encounters. other others // rehearsals in the skin brings together artists, practitioners, and facilitators to explore how we relate, connect, and feel—together.

Imagining curation as a process of community building, this layered project threads conversations across bodies, decades and continents, bringing into contact over 40 (old and new) collaborators. other others considers anti-colonial forms of touch as a method for collectively dreaming Disability justice, ecological repair, Palestinian liberation, and queer futurity.

Rooted in an intersectional feminist "we" (Sara Ahmed, 2018), other others asks: What does it mean to be in ethical contact with one another? How do we move through physical intimacies while navigating the systemic power structures that shape every encounter?

The exhibition features tactile, sculpture, audio, interactive and digital works by Genevieve Belleveau, Lauren Bon, Vanessa Hernández Cruz, Nat Decker, Anne Juren, Ericka Lopez, Siphiwe Mbonambi, Liz Nurenberg, Ashton Phillips, Teddy Pozo, Jaklin Romine, Laura Stinger and Touch Praxis.

These personalized experiences are administered by a 5-person touch ensemble (Serene Bloin, Jessica Hemingway, Rashaida Hill, Rachel Ho, Nina Sarnelle, and Selwa Sweidan). Sessions are limited and participants must sign up for a time slot in advance. Each participant negotiates their interactions and level of contact with the ensemble; this work exists only in your body.

Screening programs feature works by Basma Alsharif, Genevieve Belleveau, mayfield brooks, Linda Franke, Mona Hatoum, Petra Kuppers, Ericka Lopez, Emilija Škarnulytė, Maryam Tafakory, Ryat Yezbick, and Rima Yamazaki.

A zine created for the exhibition collects haptic works by Rebecca Bruno, Gabrielle Civil, Megan May Daalder, Alix Eynaudi, Tala Khanmalek, Petra Kuppers, Courtney Mackedanz, Kristin McWharter, Postal Service for the Dead, heidi andrea restrepo rhodes, Hannah Rubin, Cassie Thornton and Kim Upstill and Hana van der Kolk. A Palestine solidarity event featuring meital yaniv, Basma Alsharif, Mona Hatoum and For Your Viewing Pleasure raises funds for mutual aid in Gaza.

Touch Praxis is a collective research project led by Selwa Sweidan and Nina Sarnelle exploring touch as a time-based medium and form of co-creative knowledge. The exhibition also includes videos from their archive of embodied interviews with Zena Bibler, Vanessa Hernández Cruz, Maeve Devine, Jessica Hemingway, Khalia Frazier, Odeya Nini, Tyby Reddy, Jaklin Romine, Tyra Wigg, and Kim Ye.