My Hands On My Seat: BA(Hons) Fine Arts graduation exhibition 2022

The absurd imagery conjured from this title, originally generated by a poetry AI, alludes to sitting on one’s own hands. It also speaks to an attempt to orient the body within a liminal space and an uncertain time. My Hands On My Seat is a showcase of 32 young artistic practitioners in their journey, navigating their way through their practices, as they cross from this threshold into the next. This sense of uncertainty at the precipice of closing a chapter, leaves much anticipation or dread as there is also the potential for action. My Hands On My Seat acts as a precursor to the event of stepping out into the ‘real’ world.

By foregrounding the body and human experience, and our reaction to and witnessing of events both significant and mundane, this showcase aims to put a form to the chaos and creation of our last three years, by presenting diverse, yet parallel, practices. In tying together the various strands of experimentations, concepts and inner workings, this showcase ultimately culminates in a presentation spanning 10 studios.

Indeed, this presentation addresses the present moment as that of waiting and watching, but it also acts as a testament to our development as young artists and the progress we have made. It is only by holding space and witnessing (while sitting on our hands), that we have been able to accomplish what we have, and having courage to use the hands on our seats can propel us into standing on our own feet. 

Special programmes:

Curator and artist interview
Fri 29 Apr, on @mcnallyfinearts on Instagram.

Curatorial tours
Sat 30 Apr and Sat 7 May, 2pm and 5pm. Register here.

This event is part of The LASALLE Show 2022, an annual graduation showcase of contemporary arts, design and performance.
See event guide for full listings.