Ex Silens: From the series ‘I Am Your Body’
Ex Silens is an experience into a radically alternative sensorium through the entanglement of multiple bodies, multiple agencies.
About Ex Silens: From the series ‘I Am Your Body’
Ex Silens is part of the series I Am Your Body (2022-present), a project investigating deafness, sound and (artificial) intelligence through participatory research driven by d/Deaf and hard-of-hearing people.
What is deafness if not another mode of perception? What is a cyborg if not an exploded mirror of today’s corporeal experience? What is the fear of the other if not a prelude to isolation? The instability and interdependence of human bodies are the core of their existence.
Ex Silens is an experience into a radically alternative sensorium through the entanglement of multiple bodies, multiple agencies. One body is made of diverging limbs and flesh, another of resonating bones and cables. Together with the bodies of the audience members, they sound and vibrate, entering thus in material, sonic and conceptual feedback with one another; they become one, but not for long.
An exacting and sinuous ritual of sensory reorganization, Ex Silens delves into the corporeal knowledge hiding at the edges of experience. It is a dreamlike encounter, yet raw and real. It is a reminiscence, a reverie surging through real-life accounts of modes of perception that are systematically rejected by the imperative of the normal.
Here, cochlear implants, AI hearing algorithms and amplifiers are extracted from their capitalist chain of production and subverted to create sonic prostheses with their own agencies. Radically intimate, the prostheses are organs of sharing: they amplify sounds from the performer’s muscle, heartbeat and blood flow, diffuse vibrations through the bodies of audience and performer and in doing so they resonate sensible forms of being.
Technology is, by its nature, normative, but it doesn’t have to be. In Ex Silens, hearing algorithms, AI and cochlear prostheses are not what they are supposed to be. They are morphed into new means of sensing; they do not try to repair a loss with a gain, but rather magnify a kaleidoscopic sound world that’s always been there.
The interactive music of Ex Silens was composed by Donnarumma in ways that offer a complete experience to the d/Deaf public as well as the non-d/Deaf. Audience members who are d/Deaf, hard of hearing, or hearing can all experience the performance each according to their sensory configurations. There is no “normal” way of listening to it.
This event is part of the Edinburgh Futures Institute's free public events series Learning Curves, taking place from October-December 2024. Tickets are free but booking is essential.
Image Credit: Underskin Photography
Where possible we will update our listings to notify of cancelled, postponed and rescheduled events, however we STRONGLY ADVISE that you check with the venue/organiser in the first instance for updates.
All information (whether in text or photographs) is supplied in good faith but should not be relied upon as being a statement of representation or fact.GOT AN EVENT TO SHARE? It's free to post your events on What's On Edinburgh, click here to find out more!
Want to be the first to hear about what's happening in Edinburgh? Follow us on Facebook and join the What's On Scotland Group!Sponsored Links
Similar events you might like...
Guided Looking: An Artwork Audio Described
Join Fiona Johnston, audio describer, as she describes various artwork and objects from the Royal Collection at the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
READ MORE
Palace Page Turners
Many authors have been inspired to pick up their pen to write about the Palace of Holyroodhouse. These sessions will explore these literary works followed by a hearty discussion!
READ MORE
Information Lecture: Help and Healing on the Spiritual Path through the teaching of Bruno Groening
A lecture about spiritual healing and help through the teaching of Bruno Groening is taking place at The Open Door Community Centre, Edinburgh on various dates throughout the year.
READ MORE
Find Out Fridays
Explore a different theme each week on Friday afternoons, during school term-time, with our Learning team at the National Museum of Scotland.
READ MORE
Coffee & French Conversation
Want to practice your French in an informal setting? Join us at the Institut français d’Écosse for a relaxed morning chat – over a cup of coffee or tea and a croissant or pain au chocolat!
READ MORE
Beneath the Surface: King’s Gallery Short Talks
Join our team at the Palace of Holyroodhouse for weekly gallery talks as part of the exhibition Drawing the Italian Renaissance!
READ MORE
Weekly Tours at St Cecilia’s Hall
Join our team of volunteers at St Cecilia's Hall for a FREE weekly tour of the collection!
READ MORE
Stewart Copeland - Have I Said Too Much
In this fascinating "Evening With", Stewart Copeland will talk about his incredible life as a performer, musician, entertainer, and writer!
READ MORE
READ WRITE HEAR
Led by Dr Elspeth Jajdelska, READ WRITE HEAR is a live, hands-on event exploring how reading has been shared, spoken, and shaped by setting, voice, and gesture across time.
READ MORESponsored Links
Find other events in Edinburgh
Sponsored Links