Bea Lamar: Headless/Bodyless

About

"Headless/Bodyless" delves into the resonant sounds of a traditional coin belt, exploring its ancestral significance and hypnotic vibrations. Historically, belly dancers used coin belts to highlight movements and tell stories through energy work and percussion. In postcolonial Western societies, these dancers were often objectified, reduced to exoticized torsos, and stripped of their individuality.

This performance confronts the fetishization and shallow appropriation of belly dance, which often disregards its rich heritage, even in contemporary arts. By moving the coin belt’s vibrations away from the hips into a new auditory context, "Headless/Bodyless" reframes its significance. This work explores identity and the profound narratives embedded in ancestral cultural arts.

Event Details:

"Headless/Bodyless" will take place during Soundprints 2024 | Swarm, a confluence of sound and performance artists, as part of Torrance Art Museum‘s NOMAD III.  Rooted in the Sanskrit word “svarati” for “it sounds,” swarm is a juxtadisciplinary aggregation of sonifiers & performance artists overlapping in sapid ways.

About the Artist:

Born in Beirut, Lebanon, Bea Lamar's candlelit sketching sessions with her father ignited a lifelong exploration of art’s mystical dimensions. Now rooted in Pasadena on the ancestral land of the Hahamog’na Tongva people, her practice blends environmentalism, ancestral wisdom, and quantum interconnectedness. Drawing from Levantine heritage—ancient divination, celestial rhythms, and herbal lore—she creates immersive installations merging energy and physical space. Projects like “Silence” (2023) and the forthcoming “Sacred Breaths” (2024) distill complex issues into profound simplicity. Her work is exhibited and collected globally, and she was recently the recipient of the 2024 City of Pasadena Artist Grant. Lamar continues to dissolve boundaries between science, spirituality, and art.

About NOMAD III:

NOMAD III, part of the Torrance Art Museum’s programming, is a non-commercial exhibition that showcases the diverse and dynamic talents of Southern California artists. 

Participating Artists:

Bea Lamar, Brian Black and Zane Alexander S.B., cR1TTER & Laskfar Vortok, DenniswithY, divinebrick, Eden Knutilla, Emmanuel Camacho Larios, Heidi Ross, J3M5, Pablo Perez, Pure Filth Society (Ashton S. Phillips and Sadie Greyduck), Sophie Fan and Biruke Dix, Star Garden, SynthLab (Rychard Cooper, Faraday Gage, Qrux, univac), and more.