Performance Art
Quotes and Responses:
Chapter 4 CULTURE, from The Art of Activism, Your All-Purpose Guide to Making the Impossible Possible by Steve Duncombe and Steve Lambert
1. "Culture is the operating system of humanity."
I interpreted this quote to mean that culture is the explanation for why and how we operate the way we do. Our habits and decisions in our daily lives are shaped and built upon these values and stories.
2. "It's only by understanding popular culture that we can understand the needs and desires that motivate people and be able to speak their languages."
Popular culture dictates what people care about and, in turn, shows how to influence people emotionally. By paying attention to what people crave or fear, it is possible to learn about people more and connect with them in a deeper sense.
Hispanic Executive | Interview with Shaun Leonardo - Performance, Pedagogy, and Philosophy
1. "That project is entitled “You Walk”: as guests pass through this hallway, they encounter different text prompts that invite them to slow down."
This project is really interesting to me with how Leonardo makes people physically slow down in the hallway. By putting text prompts, he makes people stop and actually think about the space and actions instead of just rushing through.
2. "Artists need to take in, to process, to decipher, to separate from the noise and create things that are beautiful and impactful to the spirit."
I imagine this refers to art as an experience rather than an object. Artists can be easily overwhelmed with many images and opinions in the world but need to take in that mess and find meaning in it.
Performance Art Act
Title: Freeze and Leave
Inspired by Quote: "Although we may not notice it, our everyday lived culture embodies a certain way of seeing and being and understanding."
Instructions:
1. 3-5 performers stand in the center of the space facing in different directions. No talking, no touching, and no eye contact.
2. Performers freeze in "everyday" poses (ex. sitting in a chair, reading a book, writing in a notebook, or typing on their phones).
3. They remain frozen for 30 seconds.
4. After 30 seconds, they break the freeze and walk away normally, leaving a piece of them behind in the space.
Explanation:
The performance is meant to look at the habits and social rules we follow in our day-to-day lives and to see the details we might usually miss. People are frozen in the middle of a mundane, normal moment, longer than usual, for the performance. The audience is meant to really take a look at the specific way we subconsciously follow a cultural code in our society. Even when we aren't doing anything, like standing around in a crowd, we are still performing under a cultural script. 30 seconds of quiet can become uncomfortable for both performers and audience members. Even when the performers are close to each other, they are isolated. They are physically together, but mentally apart, mimicking the real world with individual actions. By leaving pieces behind after the performance, the space feels like a remnant of an event come to pass.
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