Queer Grief Survival Objects
Dayna McLeod
In residency from November 3rd to January 15th
At Ada X
Artist statement :
“Queer Grief Survival Objects explores what happens when technologies purported to comfort us are used explicitly for queer grief. Six months after my wife MJ died, a friend hugged me. Being held by someone felt repellent, not because of them, but because I missed MJ’s touch.
Building on Queer. Widow. Cancer., a three-screen video installation that told our story of grief, caregiving, illness, and survival using AI doppelgängers of myself, I am turning away from AI toward devices that promise comfort like breathing plush toys, weighted blankets, haptic cushions, and smart lights. At Ada X, I will experiment with these devices to understand how their functionality might be re-directed. The outcome will be a series of prototypes for a larger installation or interactive performance. This research phase prioritizes process, failure, and discovery, allowing the work to emerge through experimentation with grief, touch, and various forms of (emotional) survival.”