Transcribing a Wilderness: Waiting Worship
Transcribing a Wilderness: Waiting Worship + Lymph influenced Sounds and herbal cocktails by Chanelle Allesandre + Gentle Movement for Lymphatic Exuberance skill share facilitated by Jim Strong
Sunday, March 12, 2023 | 5:30pm (Doors), 6-8pm | At Vox | Suggested Donation $5-10, NOTAFLOF
Join us for (probably) one hour of waiting worship / silent group meditation in the gallery space of “Transcribing a Wilderness” as it is activated by Dusk. Enjoy Lymphatic remedies and Fluid moving sounds by Musician/ Herbalist/ Poet, Chanelle Allesandre and close out the evening with gentle movement facilitated by Jim Strong in the spirit of promoting a lymphatic exuberance
Sitting next to someone without words is an oddly intimate act. There is something indescribable about doing this with a large group of people. You are invited to find a comfortable place in the room and see how little you can possibly do. We won’t be doing anything. It is an experiment in seeing where we our taken, individually and as a group, when we are able to get out of our own way even just a little bit. We can call it meditation, or silent prayer.. it can be a religious feeling or one of deep relaxation depending on what language or interpretation feels right for you. I’ve often described it like the group is connecting a circuit, allowing a current of energy to pass between us – there is something significant about the group act of sharing presence which is unique from waiting alone.
In this deep place of receptivity sometimes words ideas, images or feelings may bubble up. This may be meant for you alone or for the group – If this happens and you feel moved to share – you are invited to speak into the silence and share your experience. This is a heavy burden however, because to break the silence one must carry the weight that though no words are being outwardly spoken it doesn’t mean that communication is not occurring. The practice of waiting worship is borrowed from the society of friends, or Quakers. Although I believe it has many precedents throughout time and history. Early Friends (as they are called) sought to remove the barriers of pageantry and hierarchy which had grown up in their time separating the individual seeker and the experience of holy communion or mystery . In our time and in our lives these barriers may look different .
About the Artists
Chanelle Allesandre has two cats, an apple tree, a pear tree, and a late October birthday. Her hands work with many things but her favorite of those things are: flower essences, the harp, the pen, the herbs in a tisane. She is a writer, an intuitive herbalist, an occasional radio host, and creates improvisational, atmospheric soundscapes. A collection of this work can be found at: chanelleallesandre.com
Jim Strong is a Visual and Sound artist based in the outskirts of Philadelphia, PA who employs homespun low-tech processes to create personal languages in Painting, Musical Instrument Invention, Home Recording, Anthropomorphic furniture and Poetry- Often merging many of these elements into works and environments, which are both devotional and absurd. He operates the experimental music label, COR ARDENS and under constantly shifting pretexts has organized events and workshops in abandoned graveyards, school auditoriums and exhibition spaces throughout the Philadelphia area. He has shown work at Vox Populi Gallery (Phila, PA), Hudson House (Hudson, NY), The Philadelphia Flower Show (Phila, PA), Platform Project Space (New York, NY) , Rhizome DC (Takoma Park, MD), and The Center for New Music (San Francisco, CA). His musical projects have been released by Vitrine, Chocolate Monk, Gift of Music, Regional Bears, Horn of Plenty, and Cor Ardens. Follow Jim’s Work Here.
ACCESSIBILITY DETAILS
Please note that Vox Populi is located on the third floor of a historic warehouse building at 319 N. 11th Street and that there are five steps leading from the street-level to the first-floor landing where the passenger elevator picks-up/drops-off. The entry into/out of the elevator is 29-inches wide, so may not accommodate all wheelchairs or motorized chairs. Any individual requiring a ramp to navigate this entryway is encouraged to get in touch with Vox Populi ahead of time to coordinate ramp-access and discuss accessibility details. Our ramps may not be suitable for all wheelchairs or motorized chairs, so we strongly encourage anyone requiring a ramp to be in touch at: events@voxpopuligallery.org or 215.238.1236
