Keioui Keijaun Thomas

Come Hell or High Femmes: The Dolls Rise

Keioui Keijaun Thomas © Christopher Wormald

As part of Spätschichtx Creamcake, Keioui Keijaun Thomas will perform her multimedia project Come Hell or High Femmes: The Dolls Rise on Gropius Bau’s south terrace.

Spätschicht – Live Programme at Gropius Bau is a monthly series of free events with an interdisciplinary programme ranging from talks, book discussions and film screenings to concerts and DJ sets. In addition to the performance, on this evening you can also look forward to another performance by New Noveta, a screening by CHEAP, a DJ set by Larry and concerts by Evita Manji and otay:onii.

Through a captivating fusion of sculpture and performance, Keioui Keijaun Thomas’ Come Hell or High Femmes: The Dolls Rise explores the transient nature of the “dolls” – trans femmes, who Thomas describes as “so flawless and unbound they are no longer considered real”. She understands the “doll” to be both a work in progress and a formidable force of nature. By centering self and communal care in real-time, Thomas aims to build bridges of understanding and community. Thomas’s multimedia work – comprising a three-part film and a live performance – will be presented outdoors on our south terrace and simultaneously inside the former bookstore on the lower ground floor.

Keioui Keijaun Thomas is a New York-based artist who creates live performances and multimedia installations. Her works address the multifaceted realms of Black identity-formation, encompassing affective, material and economic dimensions. Thomas has presented work nationally and internationally at Kuopio’s ANTI – Contemporary Art Festival in Finland, Birmingham’s Fierce Festival, Skopje Pride Queer Arts Festival in Macedonia, Time Based Arts Festival in Portland, Oregon, and New York’s Dweller Festival, as well as Rapid Pulse Performance Art Festival and Out of Site Festival in Chicago, among others.

During the event, photographs and video recordings may be made in which you may be recognisable. By attending, you consent to these recordings being used to communicate the event or exhibition.