Hospes

Hospes is the Greek root of the word “hospitality”, “host”, “guest” and ironically “stranger”. The duality of this word’s meaning echoes the subtext associated with words we use to identity ourselves. In Hospes, a body is illustrated not through words, but as an amalgam of multi-layered meaty eco-systems.

I am often told that I appear “racially ambiguous” and asked “what are you?”, a question that demands that I name my meat, the thing that is most visibly me. This clarification of my race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, etc. Black. Asian. Queer. Female. ultimately, tells them how to treat me.

Hospes is a 12-minute puppet stop motion that expands being towards multi-layered, transitional and diverse against contemporary social coding based in categorization. It features an amalgam comprised of a patchwork of mismatched, unnamable body pieces, stitched and tucked together with remnant material. Flayed from a containment of skin, protuberances bouncing, meaty scaffolded and rigged pieces perform a choreography of resistance in a low-lit unconfined space revealed as a corridor of opening and closing doors intent on separating and sorting the pieces.