So far I have built a substantial list of references which have informed and inspired my research. So I thought that maybe it could have been useful to look at this list of designers and artists and see if I could get in contact with them to clarify some aspects of their practices and maybe grasp some insights about their process of designing.

The first person I contacted is Ted Hyunhak Yoon, whose project Decoding Dictatorial Statues has been my main source of inspiration. I acknowledge there is a significant difference between the phenomenon of my observation and the Hyunhak Yoon’s statues: statues are invariable matter whereas the handshake is a fluid performative act which cannot be frozen into a still image. For this reason, I emailed him in relation to the performative part of his exhibition Hands Gestures. I was wondering if he could share with me some material about his exhibition and insights about his creative process, how he ended up creating a performance, how it structured it and what was the aim. I’m still waiting his reply.

The second person I contacted is Jonas Berthod. Berthod Concrete Opera is an interesting transposition of a nowadays compelling issue into the fixed and archaic theatrical form of an Opera Libretto. I was interested in this kind of exploration in relation to the latest developments of my research. Now I am curious about the possibilities offered by different forms of narration to tell a story. Because I could not find a lot of material online I first asked to Berthod if he could share with me few more details in order to have a better comprehension of his project. Then I asked him about the choices he made and why specifically an Opera Libretto. Berthod replied very promptly and firstly I was glad to hear that my research reminded him Decoding Dictatorial Statues. He was very helpful about my doubts and he shared with me another interesting reference: an exhibition happened in Zurich in 2013 titled Talk to the Hand. Berthod also offered to ship me a copy of his Libretto, so I can have a closer look to the specific language he adopted and how the frame of an Opera can influence the perception of the story.  

Last week I started to use a cardboard box as a tool to stage and investigate my re-enactments of handshakes between politicians. The box reminds in a way a puppet theatre within which the hands become the acting puppets. However last week this decision came almost intuitively, and I did not give to much weight to the possible implications of this choice, so in that case the iterations I carried on revolved around the different levels of specificity and ambiguity used to describe the event.

Following the suggestions I received during last week tutorial I decided to explore the possibilities offered by different forms of narrations, so for instance to use the puppet theatre not only as a setting place but instead as a form of theatrical narration.

Inspired by Queneau Exercises in Style, I tried to write different scripts which could describe the handshake between Trump and Shinzo Abe using from time to time a different style of theatrical narration. Finally I added the narrations to the video I had previously shot. The footage is the same but every time it narrates a different story and consequently the power dynamics get strongly transformed.

The Handshake as a Puppet Show

• Hey Mr. Hand, look what a nice palm here
  • Hey! That’s a very nice palm Mr. Hand. Let’s shake hands!
• Who-woh your grip is very firm. I’m impressed
  • Eheh thanks Mr. Hand
  • Hey stop pulling me! also I don’t like when you pat me. AAAHHH again
• Sorry I didn’t mean it. All right I’ll see you around
  • See you!

The Handshake as a Fairy Tale

Once upon a time there was a knightly hand walking around in an enchanted cardboard box. Suddenly out of nowhere a monstrous hand appeared blocking the way. The two engaged in a fight to death. The knightly hand stroke with strength the spine of the monster which fled stunned, so the knightly hand could continue its journey happily ever after.

The Handshake as an Opera

Here the hand, young man,

I’m comfortable with the purchase:

Overall, above and below,

You look like a good son.

You will soon be corporal

If you take me to exemplar.

(I hired my rival:

This too is to be counted.)                                                       from Elisir d’Amore

The handshake as a Erotic Date

1 came to visit 2 in the middle of the night. When 1 entered the room, 2 leaped towards it and they intertwined their limbs. A syncopated dance ensued which took their breath away. Animated moments of passion were alternated with quiet pauses where 1 gently caressed 2’s back. At the first lights of dawn, they separated swearing to meet again the following night.

Last week I was working with 3D modelling and particularly on the technique of rigging. Soon I realised how this new tool was adding a further needless layer of complexity and that it was probably not relevant for the kind of research I wanted to conduct. So I took a step backwards with the project in order to identify the issues I actually wanted to raise. Again, I found the variety of power dynamics embedded through the act of shaking hands as the main theme. It is my belief that power, especially in the political field, is an intrinsic element of this phenomenon, so in order to bring it to light I decided again to continue with a process of essentialization and a thorough analysis of the gesture.

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I switched medium and I started to make quick sketches of handshakes. I took Donald Trump as a case study for this analysis since on several occasions he revealed a close attention to the nuances of body language. I draw his hands interacting with other heads of state in 27 different moments, and I wrote down notes on the various position and the peculiar curl and angle of the fingers and the palm.

The phenomenology of the Trump’s handshake

Thanks to this amount of data, I noticed a recurring pattern in the handshake employed by Trump. On many occasions he is offering his hand with the palm facing upwards (which is generally considered a submissive approach by the experts of body language) giving to the counterpart a false sense of security and then he is patting the other person’s back of the hand with his left palm, which is a way of reasserting control.

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In order to go deeper into the analysis, and also because I believe the fluid phenomenon of the handshake cannot be frozen into still images, I decided to re-enact the insights gained through a sort of performance.

Inspired by the Performance Notes on gesture by Ted Yoon, with the poor means available I created an object to help me in the observation of the handshakes. It consists of a box which replicates a sort of puppet theatre inside which the hands can perform. On the upper side there is a mirror tilted by 45° which simultaneously allows to look at the performance from another perspective.

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I shot a video performance re-enacting the greeting between Trump and Shinzo Abe. The video consists of 9 progressive iterations where the same footage is accompanied by a description which gradually gets more and more precise and rich in details. Inevitably the narration becomes increasingly more complex and so the micro movements put in place by the two leaders start to acquire a multitude of significances. The different levels of specificity and ambiguity shift the viewer’s attention and the power dynamics embedded in the gestures are silently exhibited.

1. A and B shake hands
2. A and B shake hands while B pats A’s hand multiple times
3. B offers their hand to A and they start shaking hands while B pats A’s hand multiple times
4. B offers their right hand to A with the palm facing upwards and they start shaking hands while B pats A’s hand multiple times
5. B offers their right hand to A with the palm parallel to the ground facing upwards, B grasps A’s hand firmly and they start to shake hands while B pats A’s back of the hand multiple times
6. Trump offers his right hand to Abe with the palm parallel to the ground facing upwards, Abe grasps Trump’s hand firmly and they start shaking hands waving them briefly up-and-down. Trump pats Abe’s back of the hand with his left palm three times twice.
7. During a bilateral meeting in Washington Donald Trump offers his right hand to Shinzo Abe with the palm parallel to the ground facing upwards, Shinzo Abe grasps Donald Trump’s hand firmly and they start shaking hands waving them briefly up-and-down. Donald Trump pats Shinzo Abe’s back of the hand with his left palm three times and they continue to hold hands. Then Donald Trump pats Shinzo Abe’s hand three times again.
8. On the 10^th of February 2017, during a bilateral meeting in the oval office at the White House Donald Trump offers his right hand to Shinzo Abe with the palm parallel to the ground facing upwards, Shinzo Abe grasps Donald Trump’s hand firmly and they start shaking hands waving them briefly up-and-down. Donald Trump pats Shinzo Abe’s back of the hand with his left palm three times and they continue to hold hands. Donald Trump lightly squeezes Shinzo Abe’s hand and swiftly pulls him towards himself. Then Donald Trump pats Shinzo Abe’s hand three times again.
9. On the 10^th of February 2017, during a bilateral meeting in the oval office at the White House the President of the U.S Donald Trump offers his right hand with the palm parallel to the ground facing upwards to the Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe. Shinzo Abe grasps Donald Trump’s hand firmly and they start shaking hands waving them briefly up-and-down. Donald Trump pats Shinzo Abe’s back of the hand with his left palm three times and they continue to hold hands. Donald Trump lightly squeezes Shinzo Abe’s hand and swiftly pulls him towards himself. Then Donald Trump pats Shinzo Abe’s hand three times again before they loosen the grip. The two heads of state were expected to discuss many issues, including trade and security ties