How can the performing arts field create structures and spaces that are accessible to all? How can the aesthetic experience be conveyed for those with various disabilities? How can an artist with a disability build a successful practice and find support? We will explore these essential questions with Copenhagen-based Enact Lab, who have been leading conversations on the topic, and composer Molly Joyce, whose impaired left hand drives her music and movement. 

Bios: 

Composer and performer Molly Joyce was recently deemed one of the “most versatile, prolific and intriguing composers working under the vast new-music dome” by The Washington Post. Her music has additionally been described as “serene power” (New York Times), written to “superb effect” (The Wire), and “unwavering” and “enveloping” (Vulture). Her work is concerned with disability as a creative source. She has an impaired left hand from a previous car accident, and the primary vehicle in her pursuit is her electric vintage toy organ, an instrument she bought on eBay which suits her body and engages her disability on a compositional and performative level. Her debut full-length album, Breaking and Entering, featuring toy organ, voice, and electronic sampling of both sources was released in June 2020 on New Amsterdam Records, and has been praised by New Sounds as “a powerful response to something (namely, physical disability of any kind) that is still too often stigmatized, but that Joyce has used as a creative prompt.”

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JACOB NOSSELL | Head of Communication - Enactlab | Artist, Activist & Media Expert

Jacob works at the intersection where science, culture and society meet, in order to drive positive change and action around complex social challenges - such as disability and mental health. He is the Co-founder and Head of Communication for the Enactlab - a lab for change, based in Copenhagen - where he works to ensure that the first-person lived experiences of individuals and communities are deeply integrated into every aspect of the creative and research process. He also leads all media and communications efforts for the organization. He has extensive experience creating award-winning arts and media projects, that provide a more deeply embodied and nuanced understanding of disability - including journalism; documentary films – The Red Chapel (Sundance Award Winner - 2009) and Natural Disorder (2015); theater plays – Human Liquidation (2016); podcasts – My Damn Voice (2018); comedy, talks, and campaigns – It’s not a handicap (2013).

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DANIEL OXENHANDLER | Head of Culture - Enactlab | Filmmaker & Creative Producer

Daniel Oxenhandler is a filmmaker, and interdisciplinary creative producer. His work focuses on developing interdisciplinary arts projects which bring together unique intersections of film and media, arts and culture, academic research, and community, in order to co-create new modes and methods of exploring complex social issues across cultures and geographies. As a filmmaker, he has directed + produced a variety of independent film and video projects, ranging from feature-length documentaries and short narrative films, to short music films and travelogues. His most recent documentary film, The Open Window, saw its premiere at the CPH:DOX Film Festival 2019. As an interdisciplinary producer, he has played a leading role in designing, curating and organizing international arts, culture, and innovation festivals and projects (theater, music, etc) in India, Mexico, Denmark, the US, and across the world.  He is currently based in Copenhagen, Denmark and has previously lived, learned and worked around the globe - in Brazil, Mexico, India, Spain and the US.

KRISTIAN MARTINY | Head of Research - Enactlab | Cognitive Scientist

Kristian is the Co-Founder and Head of Research of the EnactLab - a non-profit lab  for change working to break down prejudices and transform stigmatizing social narratives through the intersection of arts, scientific research, and community engagement. He works in the space where cognitive science - which includes philosophy, psychology and neuroscience - meets technology, practice and art. He conducts research by openly applying this combined approach in many different contexts - including developing rehabilitation strategies and technologies, documentary films, art installations, theatre plays, and collaborative arts, science and community projects. Through his work, he explores ways in which cognitive science can be applied and communicated through different media, as well as in cross-cutting collaborations, in order to improve the spectrum of possibilities for the communities with whom he collaborates. Kristian holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy and Neuroscience from the Center for Subjectivity Research, University of Copenhagen, and the Elsass Institute.

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