Drawing from Black study and queer theories of the body, jaamil olawale kosoko’s installation brings together two new works: the three-channel video work, Syllabus for Black Love and multi-media performance installation the hold having been realized through their three-year residency at the Wex.

Staged within milieus that reflect the ancient elements—air, fire, water, earth, and spirit—kosoko’s Syllabus for Black Love is a meditative video work that embodies the shared care and healing qualities of Blackness. From a series of conversations, an intimate portrait emerges through a poetic quest that asks “What is Black love?” Arranged as a choreo-poem, Syllabus embraces the notion of ‘doulaing’ as a practice of nurturing through rhythmic and restorative gestures. Set to an orginal sound score by Everett-Asis Saunders, the three-channel work captures the movement of two dancers, kosoko and Jennifer Kidwell, as they embrace and display great affection for each other, reimagining Black queer bodies in natural settings that navigate between land and sky, bonfire and ocean, turning them into sacred intimate places.