HANDSY

Handsy is a term used to describe inappropriate or unwanted touch. Produced during 2020, the year a global pandemic heightened our awareness of the need to control contact to keep us all safe, boundaries became all the more important.  At times it’s been heartbreaking when desired touch – kissing, hugging, shaking hands – has been off limits.  The focus of this body of work however has been on bringing to the fore moments of unwanted touch.  I’m interested in the potential for seemingly small gestures to carry unexpected weight and found instances of this across a variety of sources from fiction and real life. This project contributes to the ongoing conversation about privilege and power, and what it means when small boundaries are transgressed.