You're The Boss
Residency 4: RLH RPS 21 Tournament
(Royal London Hospital Rock-Paper-Scissors 21 Tournament)
August 2009
Residency 4: RLH RPS 21 Tournament
(Royal London Hospital Rock-Paper-Scissors 21 Tournament)
August 2009
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During August 2009, artists Simon Woolham and Yara El-Sherbini collaborated on producing a mini residency in the paediatric wards at the Royal London Hospital.
The artists worked in collaboration with the young people, artists and play specialists to devise RLH RPS 21: a non-contact combat sport, based on the recognisable format of Rock-Paper-Scissors (RPS). Twenty-one hand gestures (power hands) were devised in response to the hospital environment, i.e. ‘syringe’ ‘peace’, ‘surveillance’ and ‘mask’, with players deciding on which gestures defeat others or are defeated during game play. A poster was then designed showing the rules of the game and the 21 possible gestures, and the game was played on wards between patients, with a final ward-to-ward play-off tournament. The tournament was fun, brought wards together, and created debate over the power dynamics of the power hands in combat.
The artists worked in collaboration with the young people, artists and play specialists to devise RLH RPS 21: a non-contact combat sport, based on the recognisable format of Rock-Paper-Scissors (RPS). Twenty-one hand gestures (power hands) were devised in response to the hospital environment, i.e. ‘syringe’ ‘peace’, ‘surveillance’ and ‘mask’, with players deciding on which gestures defeat others or are defeated during game play. A poster was then designed showing the rules of the game and the 21 possible gestures, and the game was played on wards between patients, with a final ward-to-ward play-off tournament. The tournament was fun, brought wards together, and created debate over the power dynamics of the power hands in combat.