Hand-in-hand: cups as a space of extended intimacy is a practice led research project that initiates an exploration of the intersection between intimacy, tenderness, memory and domestic space. Intimacy unfolds in the form of queer sexual encounters before being reframed through the lenses of desire, eros, gifting and reciprocity. As time (e)lapses, the heat of intimacy becomes embers of tenderness, and a desire to preserve the event arises. To capture these eclectic encounters and record them in tactile form, I turn to my practice of hand-thrown ceramics.

Intrigued by the paralleling of tender and rough actions embedded in ceramics and the complexity of physical intimacy between lovers, this research explores desire as a connective force between both. I ask, how might a ceramic practice emerge in relation to tender moments experienced during casual encounters with other queer men? Are gestures repeated across both, and how might I record my memories of intimacy, tenderness, and desire in clay? Could a ceramic object become a material record of intimate events? And for what purpose? How do time and space intertwine to divulge a deeper understanding of desire, intimacy, and tenderness?

Within this research, the seemingly humble cup has become the binding agent, where tender methods and material tending meet. Throughout, clay is understood and positioned as a conduit for gestural mark-making, memory recording, social connection, and desire. This set of concerns and sub-questions converge to explore the overarching question: How might a cup act as a material record of embodied intimacy, extending and transforming it across space and time?