Queerbodiment - Embodying the LGBTQ Experience

We experience the world through our bodies, and those experiences shape us, but not just on a personal level. Members of a group will often share the same life experiences, therefore will also share similar Embodiment manifestations. Just as Embodiment varies from person to person, it also varies between groups, such as: men, women, people of different nationalities, different generations, straight folk, cisgender people, LGBTQ, and so on. Even within the LGBTQ community we can find vast variations of Embodiment (for example, the bodily experiences of gay men will be quite different from those of lesbian women or trans folk). However, there are certain Embodiment themes shared by all LGBTQ people, which make up Queerbodiment. Those are: gender, sexuality, “the closet”, social exclusion, pride and more. Each of these experiences will have their own unique Embodiment manifestation. Living as LGBTQ has an ongoing and deep impact on all aspects of life. Our queerness is a core part of our being. It is possible that those who are not LGBTQ will never understand the full extent in which queerness manifests in our lives. However, Embodiment allows us to connect to the universal experiences shared by all humans. We all know what it feels like to be different. We all have secrets, therefore we can all relate to being in the closet. Most of us have been socially excluded, experienced trauma, paid a price for being ourselves or felt immensely proud of the person we’ve become. By seeking our commonality we can bridge over our differences. We’re certain that though unique to LGBTQ, we all hold some queerness within. And for LGBTQ this workshop is an invitation to better understand our own bodily experiences. This is an introductory workshop to the Queerbodiment series Ayelet Natan and Moran Bodner will hold, both in English and in Hebrew.