Jordan Baseman
'Pro Grip (How to be Humans)' at The Box
A new film commission by Jordan Baseman is now on view at The Box, where it will remain on display until 21 October 2026.
Titled Pro Grip (How to be Humans), Baseman’s multi-channel film is the final commission created as part of The Box’s British Film Institute (BFI-)-supported Reimagining the Film Archive programme, a three-year project that has invited contemporary artists to explore and reinterpret its moving image archives in new and unexpected ways.
Drawing on footage from Pro Grip, a television broadcast covering the 1990 UK Arm-Wrestling Championships, Baseman’s film combines archive material with a specially commissioned interview featuring psychologist Dr Gray Atherton from the University of Plymouth.
Together, the two elements explore how humans communicate emotion through movement, gesture and facial expression, examining the ways in which we recognise authenticity, empathy and connection beyond spoken language. The film presents the physical and emotional intensity of competitive arm-wrestling as a lens through which to consider wider questions about human behaviour, communication and social bonding.
The commission has been supported by Plymouth City Council, the British Film Institute and Arts Council England. Baseman worked closely with Dr Gray Atherton, alongside Dr Liam Cross and Dr Jackie Andrade – all psychologists from the University of Plymouth – during the development of the project.
The Box Tavistock Place
Plymouth, Devon
PL4 8AX
Opening hours:
Tuesday to Sunday, 10am-5pm
Text by The Box Plymouth