Institute of Coexistence – Rob Hesp

WAMx exhibition series Institute of Coexistence starts with performance art

British artist Rob Hesp’s The contact catalogue consists of participatory performance work, exploring how we can rediscover the importance of touch and physical closeness as social animals.

The contact catalogue is split between 3 channel film, audio headset installation and live performance encounter. The pieces examine softness, embodied feeling and interdependence as things of vital importance in contemporary society, both in the face of growing social division and unfolding environmental crises. 

Rob Hesp (they/them) is an interdisciplinary artist, choreographer and dancer from Leeds, England. The artist’s practice is driven by questions of identity, social interconnection, and community, using their work to create space for provocation, nurture and empathy. They have presented work at venues including the V&A Museum, Southbank Centre and Roundhouse London as well as at high profile festivals and art platforms such as Latitude, Spill, Fringe! Queer film festival and Buzzcut. 

Institute of Coexistence

Institute of Coexistence, the new exhibition series in WAMx, offers visitors a possibility to take their time with art works and let their senses grow more sensitive. The room has been transformed into an intimate space by draping it with red fabric. The series opens with Rob Hesp’s exhibition, which focuses on touch and contact between people. 

Danish artist Gry Worre Hallberg has created the physical and theoretical framework for the exhibition series. The four other artists included in the series take their turn in the space, resonating with the existing framework. The institute is divided into two rooms: in the first one the four artists unfold their perspectives on coexistence and interaction between humans and other species. In the second room they all leave behind a small presentation reflecting on the artistic research they have conducted while inhabiting the institute.  

The four artists in the series have been chosen through an open call held in fall 2021. Exhibitions were chosen by curator Mikkel Elming and Worre Hallberg in co-operation with WAM Turku City Art Museum. Elming is the director of the glass museum Glasmuseet Ebeltoft and is the founder of FSK – The Association for Contemporary Art. Hallberg is the artistic director and founding member of the Sisters Hope collective. 

Photo: Ville Mäkilä, Museum Centre of Turku.