Little Lifeform Model: Baby Yoga Led by a One-Year-Old

Adults usually train babies. For one hour, a baby trains the adults. Presented as part of Jiabao Li’s solo exhibition Womb Wetware, this participatory movement performance is led by her one-year-old daughter, Arwyn. The session begins with a modified Butoh score. Participants slowly empty the adult body of its learned habits: standing properly, speaking clearly, moving efficiently, and always knowing what comes next. The body becomes an open shell, ready to receive another form of intelligence. Then Arwyn takes over. Participants are invited to observe and follow her crawling, wobbling, squatting, frog-sprawling, babbling, pointing, clapping, attempting to stand. Her smallest gestures become choreography. From what they learn, participants will create short movement pieces of their own. Here, LLM stands for Little Lifeform Model. Instead of humans training a model, a baby trains the humans. Arwyn may become distracted, refuse, rest, seek care, or leave entirely. Nobody will prompt or correct her. Her unpredictability is the score. The idea is to untrain and defamiliarize our bodies, interrupting our automatic ways of standing, moving, seeing, and assigning importance. At Arwyn’s scale, a dark spot on the floor, a breeze, or a forgotten corner can hold an entire world. By following her body and attention, participants are invited to see from a different height, rhythm, and perspective, rediscovering the curiosity and wonder that adult life teaches us to ignore. Wear comfortable clothes and expect to move on the floor. All movements can be adapted for different bodies. Parents, nonparents, children, and babies are welcome. Start time may shift slightly according to Arwyn’s nap time. Facilitated by Jiabao Li. Choreographed live by Arwyn Li Galvin.