profane liquids

“Profane Liquids” is a project that explores the female body as a site of production, where biological secretions—such as sweat, body oils, tears, saliva, and others—are transformed into substances that can be collected, displayed, and possessed.

The project does not end at the acts of collection, packaging, and selling. Rather, “Profane Liquids” creates a space for the audience to interact with these secretions, and to contribute by mixing and reconfiguring them through adding their own DNA in various ways on the "Liquid Mixing Table." The body thus becomes shared, and the boundaries between self and other, between the intimate and the public, begin to collapse.

The project stems from a tense relationship with the body and with femininity—born from experiences that strip us of agency over our bodies, and from systems that declare our secretions are under religious and social moral authority, constantly observing and evaluating our bodies. “Profane Liquids” responds to the obsession with purity as a condition for survival and acceptance in society, and challenges traditional notions of branding, value, capitalism, and the commodification of the human body—especially the female body. It questions concepts of the “taboo,” of what is socially and morally forbidden, while offering an exploration of intimacy, identity, and consumer culture.

Filming: Firas Fares and Randa Atarieh
Text Writing: Eliana Assi

voice over: Laila Abd Elrazaq
Guidance: Sama Abu Hanna, Amitai Gilad, and Sharon Etgar