Dance inspired by Yemi Awosile’s Orishirishi

Stanley Picker Gallery is pleased to present an evening of dance inspired by Yemi Awosile’s Orishirishi – a new body of research that casts a lens on the insatiable desire to maintain a sense of place and ownership over one’s identity through outward public personas. Exhibited within ‘changing rooms’ in the main gallery space, the title of this work is a Nigerian (Yoruba) word taken from Awosile’s family tribe’s vocabulary, loosely meaning ‘an assortment of different things’ and showcases a collection of textiles which classify materials as an arrangement of experiences, alongside multi-media print, t-shirts and acoustic drapes.

The dance pieces will be performed by Pinelopi Kefou, Rebecca Korang and Anna Guzak – all final year students of Kingston University’s Dance programme under the tutelage of course lecturers Daniela Perazzo Domm and Elena Catalano, and are currently being workshopped in collaboration with Awolsile. As part of their research the trio are participating in practical and print-based workshops, and for the performance itself hope to don some of their own creations along with bespoke pieces by Awosile!

Performances will be staged at regular intervals within the main gallery space, allowing the visitors to move through, and interact with the exhibition – and music of hip hop artists Khirkee 17 – alongside dancers.

We invite all to join us for this unique and revealing event.