Performance by the Trans Boxing Collective / Luan Sherman & Nola Hanson
How To Take Care is a collaborative work by Luan Joy Sherman and Nola Hanson of Trans Boxing Collective. This performance explores methods for DIY self-care, how we “make do”, and the process of transforming trauma into strength and endurance. “Binding” is a form of chest compression practiced by trans people who experience dysphoria in regards to their chest. Safe binding methods do exist, but without access to a community or financial resources, many trans individuals “make do” with ACE bandages for long periods of time, despite discomfort and the risk of broken ribs and tissue damage.
How To Take Care is about our collective practice of adapting, inventing, and adjusting survival methods. Often, what we do to survive and what we do to take care of ourselves, are not the same thing. Survival tools are what carry us to a place where we can thrive and learn how to take care.
The Trans Boxing Collective is a project that facilitates an interdisciplinary approach to training and the sport of boxing. In addition to providing training for trans and gender non-conforming people, the collective collaborates with artists, community organizations, and activists to explore self-care, embodiment, and liberation. Through collaborative performances, the collective investigates various approaches to sport and reveals the intersectional landscape of boxing.
