Zooming in

The responses to the letter, mentioned in my last entry, triggered a chain reaction of thoughts and the development of my installation piece. I came up with the idea of setting up a space full of blind-folded mannequins; each of them in a particular social context. I thought the idea was brilliant, I felt I had actually hit the nail this time. Everything started falling into place nicely, until today.

I first talked to Kathleen, one of my teachers and theoretical support, and her first response was: drop the mannequins. My intial reaction was the though that my piece had just been murdered but after thinking for a while the suggestion started to make sense. The mannequins as they are, have a whole history behind. It would be quite difficult for me to achieve what I want to achieve using objects that have been objectified and de-objectified a thousand times. So I thought: okey, maybe I can just set up the spaces with the blind folds somewhere around each scenario. No manequinns. Leave the spaces open for people to fill them in -either physically or mentally. And then I met with Steve, my production teacher...

After an hour long conversation plus a taxi ride to the Power Plant (my many thanks to Steve) we came to the conclusion that I need to tear apart the global issue and zoom in at one of the many problems. I guess that my way of branching out is only making me lose focus. As Kathleen mentioned in a previous meeting, I need to find ONE or TWO issues or meanings or concepts, rather than trying to generalize. Steve said the same. I am starting to say the same. But the way I develop ideas makes it hard for me to break things down and I understand this is something I am going to have to learn if I want to make significant art pieces. This is my chance to learn it.

The plan now is to sketch a chart and/or algorythm to represent my telephone conversation with a dehumanized bank employee and her relationship with the bank. I will study the procedures that were sent to me from the ADR Chambers and find co-relations between them and I will look for contradictions. After I have the flow chart I would be able to identify relationships and maybe come up with more ideas. Some ideas are already generating in my brain:

-Performace piece:

Me, blind-folded, inside an office cubicule, dehumanized, blurting policies and responding with more policies to any particular question asked by the audience. The CON of this is that I don't want to make an angry piece. I want to find a way to focus in the possible solutions rather than just bitching about the problem.

-Need/want >> give/take:

You want, you take more. You give, you need to give more. How do I show people that the current system is based on wanting/taking which leaves us all VERY unsatisfied? How do I focus on the possitive aspects of giving? Relationship to the present economic system?

I want to thank my teachers for pushing me this far. I hope I can keep pushing myself without going crazy in the process.

Artists to research:

-Mark Lombardi

-Candice Breitz (exhibit at the Power Plant)

-"The Moniac" by Michael Stevenson