Intimate Listening – Bodies Carrying Exhibit Programming

Description by Cristina Alejandra Jimenez Gomez

In an intimate space within the exhibition space, a copera will interact with volunteer participants who visit this spot individually. Before the interaction begins, each participant will be given a token amount, which will be used to exchange stories and typical beverages of the Colombian cafés. The tokens have different values, and will determine the type of story, drink and interaction the visitor may have with the copera. After those tokens are consumed, the next participant is invited to visit the spot. This immersive theatre game delves into the notions of intimate labor, embodied listening, and care.

Event Requirements

This piece requires one person at a time in the exhibition space. Each person will have around 10 minutes of interaction. For the quality of the piece, it is requested that participants interact individually as personal stories arise during the conversation, and those who wish to participate are invited to wait outside the room.

About the artist

Cristina Alejandra Jimenez Gomez (she/they) is a Colombian interdisciplinary artist and educator developing her PhD studies in the INDI program. She is interested in creative, transformative and communal experiences that address critical intersectional concerns. Based in Tiohtià:ke – Mooniyang – Montreal since 2019. CA is affiliated with Hexagram, Milieux-LeParc, COHDS, ALLab, and SenseLab-3e at Concordia University. Editor and workshop facilitator at Kodama Cartonera, an independent publishing house born in Tijuana, Mexico, in 2010. CA’s research-creation approach is performative, feminist, and (an)archival. Her perspectives stem from embodied practices as a source of knowledge, intertwining processes of doing-feeling-thinking. Due to their experience in different theatre troupes, CA learned about diverse techniques focused on developing research and creative methods for, in, and within public spaces and non-conventional stages. Currently, they are a board member of Teesri Duniya Theatre, where she has developed two community engagement projects.

Event language(s): English