[Poster/Illustrations] The House Kiki Built
THE HOUSE THAT KIKI BUILT is a process-based transdisciplinary project invoking underground Ballroom practices, aesthetics and performance. Underground Ballroom culture originated in Harlem, New York City by the Black and Latinx queer and trans community in the late 60s, and has now expanded globally. Kiki is a derivative of the major Ballroom scene which focuses on youth-engagement, advocacy and equitable access to Ballroom culture and functions. The Ballroom House is an alternative kinship structure; chosen families constructed by House Parents and Children, providing an informal but deeply committed infrastructure of care, safety and mentorship. Extending the metaphor of the House, the project harnesses the nexus of creative labouring within the underground Singaporean Ballroom scene and transforms 136 Goethe Lab into a community clubhouse for the community. While in residence, the community gathers as a research and generative network through facilitated practice sessions, category study, discussion and interview sessions with overseas Ballroom figures, contributing to shared understandings of Ballroom’s colourful histories and present(s). We seek to dive into the epistemologies of situated knowledge in Ballroom culture, deepen our craft and artistries in the expressive modes of Vogueing, fashion-making & presentation, and Ballroom-specific musicking as communal praxes of self-affirming glamour-as-resistance. We will programme several public outreach programmes for new friends and allies who are interested to learn more about underground Ballroom and our local scene and to pick up the many skills that underground Ballroom has gifted to her initiates. present(s). Artist Residency Lead by Shayus (Ada) Sharif Visuals Designed by Fel (Felicia) Utama
