Established in 2022 –a time of tension in the public debate about freedom of speech, institutional silence, and identity politics, Gestures and Nods explores the role of the arts in developing a pluricultural understanding in Norway. It fosters vibrant and diverse communities of artists, scholars, and other creative peers who take creative, intellectual, and political risks to bring about positive change.
Through seminars, public programs, publications, archives, residencies, and more, we reflect on the role of perfromance and embodied arts.
Gestures and Nods is a platform where performative and embodied practices can be experienced, researched, discussed, and where knowledge can be exchanged collectively and connecting different geographies and non-Europatriarcal, anti-oppressive, and anti-racist perspectives.
Gestures and Nods challenges the notion of disciplines in the Nordic context, and puts transdisciplinarity and un-discipline at the forefront.
Gestures and Nods is a trans-geographical network. Knowledge-sharing is particularly important in a time where border politics have been strengthened towards non-EU citizens in Scandinavia/Skáđes-suolo and the Nordics.
Gestures and Nods is an archive.
Moving away from deep academic content, we want to reach out to art practitioners, and cultural workers already interested in breaching the gap between heavy institutional language and communities.
The archive consists of fanzines, club parties, witness-writing, video-essays, video-performances, photo-performances, and other formats.
Gestures and Nods is initiated by Itzel Esquivel and Angelle Khachik.
Itzel Esquivel (they/them) is an organizer, writer, and creative human that enjoys gathering with interesting folks to reflect, exchange, and learn together.
Angelle Khachik (they/them) is a curator, performance artist, opera singer, sonic artist, and co-founder of Queer Voices Opera Collective.
As performance artist who uses voive as their main medium, they are interested in embodied practices and collaborative horizontal processes.
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