Event
rebirth of a fraying body
Thursday 22 February 2024
Performance by Saoirse Amira Anis
In an intimate performance composed of movement and spoken word Saoirse Amira Anis will embody the creature present in their recent works which represents the non-humanity projected onto marginalised bodies by Western society. Considering the decolonial potential in consciously becoming “fugitive”, as suggested by Akwugo Emejulu, Anis will weave together words from radical texts that influence their thinking with their own prose, echoing the woven-together ropes of the creature’s tentacles. Positioning fugitivity as an act of rebirth, Anis offers an incitement for urgent collective action towards liberation.
Booking
Free tickets available via Eventbrite
Biography
Saoirse Amira Anis' creative practice prioritises radical care, informality and empathy, influenced by their Scottish and Moroccan heritage and underpinned by interests in Black queer theory, Disability Justice, and politics of liberation. Through writing, moving image and performance, they consider how the body holds ancestral and lived memories, particularly in relation to guilt, shame and resistance.
About the exhibition
The Scale of Things is a group exhibition of three moving image works that consider relations between humans and non-humans forming an exploration through history, intimacy and spirituality. Presenting the Scottish premiere of Grace Ndiritu’s Becoming Plant (2022), alongside Saodat Ismailova’s The Haunted (2017), and on its fiftieth anniversary, Margaret Tait’s Aerial (1974).
These works are brought together by a desire to unsettle how we imagine and see ourselves as part of nature. Understanding the recurring need for intimacy, to feel a connection that is commeasurable with our ability to impact and control, the exhibition approaches desire itself; the desire to plunge our bodies deep into the earth and transcend the bounded individualism of being ‘human.’
Co-curated by Sophia Yadong Hao (Cooper Gallery, DJCAD) and Professor Sarah Perks (Teesside University).
Read more on our exhibition page.
Access
Cooper Gallery is located to the right side of the DJCAD buildings on Perth Road. The entrance is via double doors which face onto a car park.
The gallery is on two floors. Ground floor has ramped access. First floor is accessible by an internal lift and six steps with a handrail. Wheelchair access is via a stairclimber. Please email in advance if you require lift or stairclimber access.
First floor is also accessible via 24 steps. Two flights of 12 steps with handrails are separated by a landing.
Exhibition video is subtitled and captioned in English. Audio will be played aloud via speakers. Seating is provided and/or additional seating available, please ask an invigilator.
For all enquiries please email: exhibitions@dundee.ac.uk
Toilets
The ground floor has a wheelchair accessible toilet. The toilet is gender neutral.
Interpretation
Large print versions of the exhibition information handout are available, please ask our Guides. If you require alternative formats for material in exhibitions please email or ask our Guides.
Image credit
Saoirse Amira Anis, breach of a fraying body, 2023. Performance view. Commissioned by Art Night. Photo by Erika Stevenson.
Funding support
The Scale of Things is supported by Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design
Cooper Gallery
Exhibitions@dundee.ac.uk