Events
with seeds in their hands
On Saturday, August 16th, Armory Center for the Arts will host an evening of seed processing, conversation, and performance that engages our ability to expand on collective care, rest, and the holding of collective grief. with seeds in their hands will be hosted by the Armory Getty Marrow Undergraduate Interns Kyla Carter and Ashe West-Lewis, featuring a Seed Processing workshop, an artist talk, and a live performance dedicated to creating alternative futures that challenge existing power structures.
It is important that we listen to our bodies’ message of liberation and create SANCTUARY in whatever way that means to us. with seeds in their hands will provide a space where rest is honored as a practice that fosters well-being, strengthens communities, and enhances collective action.
Workshop: Seed Processing with Altadena Seed Library
4-5 pm
Only 25 spots available. RSVP for this Seed Processing and grief workshop where we will learn about California native plants and their seeds while holding space for our collective grief. By the end of the session, you will have your own seeds to take home!
This Seed Processing workshop will be led by Nina Raj, who is a naturalist and the founder of Altadena Seed Library, a growing network of seed exchange boxes. Through the distribution of free seeds, they are working to expand equitable access to shade and green spaces, increase food sovereignty, connect neighbors, and restore local ecosystems.
Events below are open to all after the Workshop concludes
Artist Panel: In Conversation with Kikesa Kimbwala DeRobles & iris yirei hu
5:30-6:15pm
The artist panel discussion will include two artists involved at the Armory: Artist in residence iris yirei hu and Kikesa Kimbwala DeRobles, artist of Collective in Residence: Here Lay A Home. They will be sharing their experiences of what it's like to archive memory, rebuild, and plant seeds towards imagined futures.
Performance: The Body As An Altar for Rest
6:30-7 PM
“Rest uplifts and boosts our Spirit, allowing us to know that we are enough, and the care of our souls deserves a role in our healing plans.” - Ticia Hersey, Rest Is Resistance: A Manifesto
Join us to honor the infinite amount of possibilities we can reimagine rest and collective care.
As an offering, Kyla Carter and Alexander Catanzarite will be doing a vacbed performance. The vacuum bed is a breathwork and sensation device that encloses the person inside in latex, restricting most of their movement. As the person inside, Alexander will be encased in latex while Kyla releases the air out of it. While inside, Kyla will care for Alexander's body while they’re in a state of rest. Being tender to not only the bodies we occupy, but to someone else’s body, reflects our commitment to collective care, embodying empathy, consent, and nurturing as essential components of our shared responsibility for one another's well-being.
Images: Kikesa Kimbwala DeRobles courtesy of Kickesa. iris yirei hu in her studio, photo credit: Claudia Lucia. Last image courtesy of Mono.