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Gesturing is its own language. 

Hands that make, touch, grasp, care and reach.

I consider the connectivity of hand motions.

An outstretched palm may communicate an offering: a helping hand. 

It is also the first sign of a greeting: a handshake. 

Hands placed together express gratitude, or religious piety in prayer. 

Twiddling thumbs convey boredom, 

Closed hands indicate something held, 

and when they’re placed over the heart, a sincerity.

 

I experienced all of these artworks first-hand,

collecting photographed compositions of hands at various art galleries and institutions over the last few years.

I think of the hands involved in the making of these works: 

Hands that paint, that draw, that photograph, and design.

How many hands were involved in their making? 

How many hands have touched it since it parted with its maker(s)? 

I consider the hands of the art dealers, collectors, movers, gallery workers, custodians and kinesthetic viewers.

 

Reflecting on these histories of touch, I try my hand at enacting these gestures:

communicating various body languages by embodying each hand’s articulations.

I now ponder on the hands that modelled…

the hands that posed in stillness,

or the hands captured in photos in their most natural state. 

 

Through practiced choreography, I emulate each hand posture and reify these histories of touch.

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