It’s dark
Cold
The trees arch their back over to
whisper in your ear.
"There is someone amongst our trunks
Beneath our branches
In the shadow of our leaves
Searching
For no one else but you
They have found you
And now
Under our cover
They follow you.”
Marking the end of Brathwaite-Shirley’s. (b. 1995, UK) year-long artist residency at Studio Voltaire,
the
"REBIRTHING ROOM"
demonstrates her ongoing research into the history of gaming, its role as an
art form
path finder
educational tool
with an innovative use of VR technology as a site for debate and critical discussion.
Brathwaite-Shirley's practice
SEEKS TO ARCHIVE BLACK TRANS EXPERIENCE USING TECHNOLOGY TO IMAGINE
BLACK TRANS LIVES IN ENVIRONMENTS THAT CENTRE THEIR BODIES.
THOSE LIVING
THOSE THAT HAVE PASSED
AND
THOSE THAT HAVE BEEN FORGOTTEN.
The expansive thematics of Brathwaite-Shirley’s practice include
digital real estate
archiving
and
Possible futures of Black and Brown Trans bodies
At Studio Voltaire, Brathwaite-Shirley has created a space where the Audience can choose to be
BORN AGAIN
YOU FIND YOURSELF WITHIN A FOREST
IT CAN CHANGE YOU
WILL YOU LET IT?
THE REBIRTHING ROOM 'hacked’ the technology of a VR headset, turning it into an audience-operated controller. The headset’s individualised screen experience has instead become a
large-scale
projection-mapped environment, which requires the audience to work collaboratively in order to
effectively navigate the space.
WE ARE WAITING
IT'S IN YOUR HANDS
Terms & Conditions
YOU ARE BEING LET INTO A SPACE
THIS SPACE IS FOR
THOSE THIS COUNTRY HAS FAILED TO KEEP SAFE
THOSE THAT MUST REMAIN SILENT
THOSE THAT WERE ABANDONED
AND HAD TO CHANGE IN THE SHADOWS
THIS IS A
SPACE FOR THOSE THAT DIED IN YOUR EYES
ONLY TO RISE AGAIN
AS THEMSELVES
FOR THE FIRST TIME
THIS IS
A PRO BLACK
PRO TRANS SPACE
CALLED THE REBIRTHING ROOM
IN ENTERING THIS ROOM YOU AGREE BE REBORN
IN THE SHADOWS
YOU MAY FEEL UNCOMFORTABLE
YOU MAY NOT SURVIVE
TREAD CAREFULLY
“We are hiding more of ourselves. Not only our identity but our honesty. Scared to say the wrong things within the right group. Scared into being silenced by our own kind.
Welcome to the REBIRTHING ROOM. A room which allows the viewers to come and be reborn in authenticity. This environment has not been made for your pleasure but instead as a purpose to give you a new life.
Enter the space if you are ready to be reborn in the shadows.”
