Untitled performance (2015)
Date: October 24 2015
Performance
Dimensions: Variable
The piece begins with me lying on the floor with a skeleton costume on top of me. After some time I begin to move, and slowly put the bottom half of the costume on. I walk into the performance space, and after a few moments begin to address the audience, starting with, “I didn't want to get my pants dirty, so I took them off.” I move into the space while addressing the audiences fears about my body, and how if I make my body disappear the fear will stop. I move through the space with the promise to disappear. As I begin to put the skeleton costume on fully, I talk about what not having a body would bring to myself and the viewer. “You can't break my back if I don't have a body, and I won't steal your land, or your man if I don't have a body.” Once I'm in full costume, I perform a series of gestures with a mattress; lying under it, hiding, and ultimately carrying it out of the space on my back while reciting a text I wrote about bones. This work was driven more by speech than by action and gesture. There are some obvious references to Abramović's work Nude With Skeleton, but it ultimately evolves from a static image to a dialogue engaging with fear and the body.
Previous exhibitions:
Performance
Dimensions: Variable
The piece begins with me lying on the floor with a skeleton costume on top of me. After some time I begin to move, and slowly put the bottom half of the costume on. I walk into the performance space, and after a few moments begin to address the audience, starting with, “I didn't want to get my pants dirty, so I took them off.” I move into the space while addressing the audiences fears about my body, and how if I make my body disappear the fear will stop. I move through the space with the promise to disappear. As I begin to put the skeleton costume on fully, I talk about what not having a body would bring to myself and the viewer. “You can't break my back if I don't have a body, and I won't steal your land, or your man if I don't have a body.” Once I'm in full costume, I perform a series of gestures with a mattress; lying under it, hiding, and ultimately carrying it out of the space on my back while reciting a text I wrote about bones. This work was driven more by speech than by action and gesture. There are some obvious references to Abramović's work Nude With Skeleton, but it ultimately evolves from a static image to a dialogue engaging with fear and the body.
Previous exhibitions:
- “Konttori 7² : 'TRASH'” Performance event. Participating artist. Aleksanterinkatu 13, Helsinki, Finland. October 24 2015
