Performance & Art Talk: Cody Perkins and Qwenga with Amanda Sroka and Chris Emile
Over the course of the Infinite Rehearsal exhibition, each of the featured artists will participate in a public program in which they share a draft of a work in process. Join us this evening for a special preview of works in process by Cody Perkins and Qwenga, followed by a discussion with exhibition curators Chris Emile and Amanda Sroka about the ideas behind the show.
This performance includes flashing lights and may potentially trigger seizures for people with photosensitive epilepsy. Viewer discretion is advised.
Based in Los Angeles, Chris Emile is an active director, choreographer, educator, and performer. He holds a BFA in Dance from the inaugural class at Alonzo King LINES Ballet/Dominican University. Chris’s directorial and choreographic work oscillates between the experiential, filmic, staged, and commercial worlds. His film work has been presented by the Getty Museum, Compound LB, NOWNESS, 4:3 Boiler Room, Art + Practice, and CULTURED Magazine. His choreographic work has been commissioned by Solange Knowles, the Kennedy Center, Sao Paolo Opera, Anderson Paak, Moses Sumney, San Francisco Symphony, Opera Omaha, the University of Southern California, the Institute of Contemporary Art, and The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Most recently, he was commissioned by the LA Opera to choreograph for the Pulitzer Prize winning opera p r i s m, on which he also assistant directed. He is the co-founder and curator for the movement-based project No)one. Art House where he has programmed site specific performances, films, educational workshops, and movement-based installations with institutions such as Hauser & Wirth, the Getty Museum, SAINT HERON, Refinery 29, St. Germain, the 14th Factory, and the California African American Museum, among others.
Cody Perkins (also known as Algorythm.Code) is an interdisciplinary artist born and raised in Sylmar, California. He attended the Alexander Hamilton Music Academy as a Performance and Electronic Music major and continued his studies with a focus on photography and audio engineering. He has scored numerous films and installations for brands and artists, is the founder of the musical collective The Algorythms, and has produced music for many independent genre-bending musicians both locally and internationally.
Qwenga is a multi-hyphenate artist and creative director whose work exists in the crossroads of emotion, movement, and transformation. Influenced by the krump dance of the Los Angeles streets and the evocative mime performances he participated in as a child in church, Qwenga’s craft combines the dynamic realms of dance, visual arts, and technology. These diverse disciplines coalesce into multisensory installations that stir audiences at various levels, prompting reflection on our shared human experiences and the transformative potential of creative expression. Qwenga is particularly fascinated by the relationship between the body and architecture, examining how we inhabit space and are, in turn, shaped by our surroundings. This exploration, combined with his commitment to highlighting underrepresented voices—particularly artists of color—redefines the role of art in society and challenges conventional narratives.
Amanda Sroka is a curator whose creative work focuses on global histories of contemporary art with an emphasis on interdisciplinary practices and a specialized interest in artwork that operates at the intersections of our personal, political, and material worlds. She is the Senior Curator at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles where she has recently organized presentations dedicated to the work of Carmen Argote, Alberta Whittle, Trương Công Tùng, and Christine Sun Kim, and supported with the 2023 exhibition, Milford Graves: Fundamental Frequency. From 2014 to 2022, she was the Associate Curator of Contemporary Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art where she organized solo exhibitions with Martine Syms, Zoe Leonard, Senga Nengudi, Marisa Merz, Yael Bartana, and Jitish Kallat as well as a forthcoming exhibition with Lawrence Abu Hamdan. There, she also curated collaborative group exhibitions including Philadelphia Assembled with artist Jeanne van Heeswijk (2017) and Fault Lines: Contemporary Abstraction by Artists from South Asia featuring the work of Tanya Goel, Sheela Gowda, Prabhavathi Meppayil, and Zarina (2020). Prior to her time in Philadelphia, Sroka was a curatorial assistant at the New Museum in New York.
No)one. Art House is an oscillating collection of artists ranging across disciplines rooted in performance. Dedicated to creating opportunities for artistic collaboration, building audiences for the arts and providing learning opportunities, NOAH has presented itself throughout the site specific, fine art, and commercial avenues since 2014. Notable collaborations include the Getty Center, SAINT HERON, Hauser & Wirth, ACE Hotel, and Refinery 29.
This performance includes flashing lights and may potentially trigger seizures for people with photosensitive epilepsy. Viewer discretion is advised.
Based in Los Angeles, Chris Emile is an active director, choreographer, educator, and performer. He holds a BFA in Dance from the inaugural class at Alonzo King LINES Ballet/Dominican University. Chris’s directorial and choreographic work oscillates between the experiential, filmic, staged, and commercial worlds. His film work has been presented by the Getty Museum, Compound LB, NOWNESS, 4:3 Boiler Room, Art + Practice, and CULTURED Magazine. His choreographic work has been commissioned by Solange Knowles, the Kennedy Center, Sao Paolo Opera, Anderson Paak, Moses Sumney, San Francisco Symphony, Opera Omaha, the University of Southern California, the Institute of Contemporary Art, and The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Most recently, he was commissioned by the LA Opera to choreograph for the Pulitzer Prize winning opera p r i s m, on which he also assistant directed. He is the co-founder and curator for the movement-based project No)one. Art House where he has programmed site specific performances, films, educational workshops, and movement-based installations with institutions such as Hauser & Wirth, the Getty Museum, SAINT HERON, Refinery 29, St. Germain, the 14th Factory, and the California African American Museum, among others.
Cody Perkins (also known as Algorythm.Code) is an interdisciplinary artist born and raised in Sylmar, California. He attended the Alexander Hamilton Music Academy as a Performance and Electronic Music major and continued his studies with a focus on photography and audio engineering. He has scored numerous films and installations for brands and artists, is the founder of the musical collective The Algorythms, and has produced music for many independent genre-bending musicians both locally and internationally.
Qwenga is a multi-hyphenate artist and creative director whose work exists in the crossroads of emotion, movement, and transformation. Influenced by the krump dance of the Los Angeles streets and the evocative mime performances he participated in as a child in church, Qwenga’s craft combines the dynamic realms of dance, visual arts, and technology. These diverse disciplines coalesce into multisensory installations that stir audiences at various levels, prompting reflection on our shared human experiences and the transformative potential of creative expression. Qwenga is particularly fascinated by the relationship between the body and architecture, examining how we inhabit space and are, in turn, shaped by our surroundings. This exploration, combined with his commitment to highlighting underrepresented voices—particularly artists of color—redefines the role of art in society and challenges conventional narratives.
Amanda Sroka is a curator whose creative work focuses on global histories of contemporary art with an emphasis on interdisciplinary practices and a specialized interest in artwork that operates at the intersections of our personal, political, and material worlds. She is the Senior Curator at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles where she has recently organized presentations dedicated to the work of Carmen Argote, Alberta Whittle, Trương Công Tùng, and Christine Sun Kim, and supported with the 2023 exhibition, Milford Graves: Fundamental Frequency. From 2014 to 2022, she was the Associate Curator of Contemporary Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art where she organized solo exhibitions with Martine Syms, Zoe Leonard, Senga Nengudi, Marisa Merz, Yael Bartana, and Jitish Kallat as well as a forthcoming exhibition with Lawrence Abu Hamdan. There, she also curated collaborative group exhibitions including Philadelphia Assembled with artist Jeanne van Heeswijk (2017) and Fault Lines: Contemporary Abstraction by Artists from South Asia featuring the work of Tanya Goel, Sheela Gowda, Prabhavathi Meppayil, and Zarina (2020). Prior to her time in Philadelphia, Sroka was a curatorial assistant at the New Museum in New York.
No)one. Art House is an oscillating collection of artists ranging across disciplines rooted in performance. Dedicated to creating opportunities for artistic collaboration, building audiences for the arts and providing learning opportunities, NOAH has presented itself throughout the site specific, fine art, and commercial avenues since 2014. Notable collaborations include the Getty Center, SAINT HERON, Hauser & Wirth, ACE Hotel, and Refinery 29.
Clockwise from top left: Cody Perkins (photo: Dusty St. Amand), Chris Emile (photo: Kya Lou), Amanda Sroka (photo: Derrick Dean Photography), Qwenga (photo: courtesy of the artist).
