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Mater Matter Matrix detritus
Jul. 17th, 2009 04:21 pmYesterday, I went to a public art performance in Seattle's Camp Long as part of my quest to enjoy as much public art as I could this summer. It's funny when at the entrance to the art show they have wine and bug spray because you might want some of either.
The general genre of the performance art were:
- unfolding
- dance
- pitchshifted
The overall piece was a metaphor for the water supply of seattle and its gradual improvement over time. All pieces in the series are a metaphor for that, as it's funded by our public utility agency.
There were several sorts of pitchshifted and slightly circuitbent devices used as accompaniment to the dance, and the dance was one of those where the artist starts wrapped in something and the whole dance is spent with the artist working her way free of it. That's a relatively common visual metaphor for overcoming or struggling towards freedom in performance art.
In general, this piece wouldn't have worked well on a stage but in the setting of camp long's forest canopy by a pond and alongside a stream it worked really well. The webby stuff in the trees is still there and will be for a couple of weeks. It's crocheted and was put together at a series public workshops that friends of mine went to. So far as I can tell, it's about 100 yards long.
This was a pretty great piece. Although a lot of the elements of the actual performance were very much standard (the unwinding) or in line with current fad (the circuitbending), it was a great time. It would have been a sublime transporting experience if not for the kids in the audience, who changed the experience into something more dynamic by acting as a sort of antiphon to the droning music.
Also, some ducks came by to investigate and were quacking at the audience. That was also great.
The general genre of the performance art were:
- unfolding
- dance
- pitchshifted
The overall piece was a metaphor for the water supply of seattle and its gradual improvement over time. All pieces in the series are a metaphor for that, as it's funded by our public utility agency.
There were several sorts of pitchshifted and slightly circuitbent devices used as accompaniment to the dance, and the dance was one of those where the artist starts wrapped in something and the whole dance is spent with the artist working her way free of it. That's a relatively common visual metaphor for overcoming or struggling towards freedom in performance art.
In general, this piece wouldn't have worked well on a stage but in the setting of camp long's forest canopy by a pond and alongside a stream it worked really well. The webby stuff in the trees is still there and will be for a couple of weeks. It's crocheted and was put together at a series public workshops that friends of mine went to. So far as I can tell, it's about 100 yards long.
This was a pretty great piece. Although a lot of the elements of the actual performance were very much standard (the unwinding) or in line with current fad (the circuitbending), it was a great time. It would have been a sublime transporting experience if not for the kids in the audience, who changed the experience into something more dynamic by acting as a sort of antiphon to the droning music.
Also, some ducks came by to investigate and were quacking at the audience. That was also great.
