HUA HUA & DATIANSHI
Hua Hua (she/her) is an artist and Shibari teacher. She is the founder of Borderline Shibari, a platform dedicated to creating a mindful and conscious Shibari community. She began the first public rope art classes in Shanghai, and has held numerous workshops, performances and Shibari events across China. She is now based in Europe and continues to develop Borderline online and offline.
She believes that rope bondage is a practice of authenticity. To her, ropes build the bridge between two beings; between interior and exterior and between the elevated and the underground. In addition to her Shibari work, her art work also includes experimental nude photography, physical theatre, installations and she frequently collaborates with other artists to encourage cross-cultural integration. Her artwork is influenced by BDSM, just as her Shibari teaching derives techniques from other disciplines.
hua hua's Shibari teaching style is centred around intention, expression and the emotional process of rope. Her work has been featured on various Shibari platforms such as Shibari Study and Queer Rope festival.
13 May from 10:00 to 17:00
Shibari is never just about restraining, it can also be a method of showcasing the beauty of the person in ropes. Many people are drawn to Shibari for its visual aestheticism, where both the body and expression of the model are celebrated. However, often the ideals are still drawn from mainstream beauty standards.
The aim for this workshop is to expand our definition of what is beautiful when we practice ropes. Rather than teaching a series of positions, we will be using a range of shibari exercises to explore ways to discover, fetishise and highlight the alluring features of the model. These exercises will include shibari concepts and discussion over aesthetics, so that each couple can build a session with the same intention but choosing patterns and positions that suit their partners own unique qualities.
14 May from 10:00 to 17:00
Semenawa is a style of rope that many people have heard of but still perhaps have difficulty understanding. Semenawa is often translated as ‘torture’ rope, however a more accurate term might be to describe it as ‘tormenting’. There can be many different approaches to this style, but what binds them all is the clear intention for the model to experience ‘suffering’ through the rope exchange.
In this workshop I will introduce my own personal approach, which I developed through my studies with Naka Akira and integrated with my other life practices. The aim for this workshop is to explore what suffering means to each individual, and how it can be used as a tool in play. We will be looking at the application of timing, positions, proximity and non-verbal communication to create a Semenawa experience.
The workshop will include Semenawa exercises using no suspension point, semi suspension and full suspension to give students the opportunity to explore Semenawa from different experience levels. Students are encouraged to adapt the sequences shown in the demonstrations to suit their dynamic.
Those intensive workshops are focused on people who have a minimum of experience although it is expected that the group will be of mixed levels where it can enrich the experience of the workshops throughout the weekend. These workshops are required to be attended in pairs (one person tying and the other being tied), although they can switch roles if they wish between the first and second day. The instructor suggests that the couples attending have a minimum of confidence in tying together and feel comfortable practicing ropes given the particularly intimate nature of the workshop themes.
Hua Hua will give the class in English and there will be the possibility of live translation into Spanish if needed.
Those workshops function as a two-day intensive or modular format. You can attend Saturday and Sunday, or you can attend individual days that may find interesting. In the latter case, it is very important that you meet the requirements, for example: if you do not know how to handle suspension lines, you will not be able to attend the Sunday workshop because it requires some previous knowledge.
If you have any doubts, please contact the organization:
Reserve your place in advance from our website or via email.
12 May from 18:00 to 23:00
A special evening of Shibari performances to celebrate the beauty of this art for both amateurs and the curious who want to be entertained in an intense and beautiful evening.
Opening performance by artists TBC, then the main performance by our international guests, Hua Hua and Datianshi right after. We will end the evening with a Shibari Jam where we will leave the room open until closing for free practice where participants who want to use the facilities and inspired by the performances, can create their sessions and share them with others in a relaxed, respectful and safer environment.
Curious guests who don't want to participate don't have to, they can stay and admire, socialize with other like-minded people, consult and ask whatever they want, even if you like to draw, you can do it.
Advance tickets available for the performance + Jam.
