The Art of Loving Ourselves

In his performances, Zhou takes an intersectional approach to uncover and understand underlying affections, such as the shame experienced by a non-heterosexual man.

How do conditions such as as history, coloniality, capitalism, politics and religion shape our identity and sexuality? Can sexuality become a prism for understanding ourselves better？Is there only one true self? Or do we actually consist of multiple selves？Through performance, Zhou Jinxiao aims to create a safe space to practice embodied forms of (un)learning and explore self-love: the act of loving one’s self.

The artist explores how oppressive power structures have constructed an emotional framework one is forced to experience while searching for one’s sexual self - including a perpetual sense of shame. In the performative work The Art of Loving Jinxiao, Zhou unfolds a multiplicity of selves that allows queer affections to flow, opening up a pathway to communicate with our/selves and gain a deeper understanding of who we are. At the same time, the practice of self-love uncovers and challenges the visible and invisible suppressions non-heterosexual men experience on a daily basis.

Photo-credits: Chun Yao Lin and Alëna Vinokurova

Zhou Jinxiao

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