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Roland TheICA’sMagazine Issue6 June—August2010 — FeatuRing
backgRound mateRial on
4 OscarTuazon MyMistake
12 TheTroublewithSociety
16 HarmonyKorine TrashHumpers
22 GangofFour
26 LIFT
— looking back
30 MashUp
— aRtist pRoject
34 MarkvonSchlegell TheArtistAbstract#3
— including texts & otheR contRibutions by
PhillipBlondJosephConradTimEtchellsPeterFendCharlesJencks&NathanSilverJean-LucNancyJonKing&AndyGillHarmonyKorineEdwardLawrensonGreilMarcusHaroldOffeh,LeilaMcAlister&JoeNunnPhilippePirotteRayoAdReinhardtMarkvonSchlegellMarkVernon
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 20102
PublishedtoaccompanytheICAprogrammeJune—August2010
Editor:RichardBirkettCopyeditor:MelissaLarnerDesigner:SarahBoris
Printer:NewsfaxInternationalPublisher:ICA,London
TheICAandOscarTuazonwouldliketothanktheFrenchEmbassyfortheirgeneroussupportoftheOscarTuazonexhibition.WewouldalsoliketothankShahinAfrassiabi,DanieleBalice,StephenBeasley,EivindFurnesvik,AlexanderHertling,PhilippePirotte,JaneRendell,MatthewStadler,JonathanViner,MatthewWilliams.
ICAPreviewssupportedby:ChangBeer,Thailand’saward-winningbeer.
ThedesignofROLANDhasbeenadaptedfromaneditorialsystemoriginallycreatedbyWillStuart,anditsnameistakenfromtheartistandICAfounderRolandPenrose.
Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthispublicationmaybereproduced,storedinaretrievalsystemortransmitted,inanyformorbyanymeansmechanical,photocopyingorotherwise,withoutpriorpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher.
AllimagesbyOscarTuazonarecourtesytheartistandBaliceHertling,Paris;FortescueAvenue/JonathanViner,London;Maccarone,NewYorkandSTANDARD(OSLO),Oslo
Allotherimagescourtesytheartistsandaslistedhereafter.TrashHumpersp.17&18:CourtesyofWarpFilms/AlcoveEntertainment.
Alltextscopyrighttheauthors,andpublishersaslistedincitations.Alleffortshavebeenmadetocontacttherightfulownerswithregardstocopyrightandpermissions.
InstituteofContemporaryArtsTheMallLondonSW1Y5AHUnitedKingdom+442079303647www.ica.org.uk
ExecutiveDirector:EkowEshunActingDirectorofProgramme:DavidThorpHeadofLiveProgramme:JamieEastmanHeadofLearning:Emma-JayneTaylorHeadofTechnical:LeeCurranDirectorofCommunications:NatashaPlowrightCinemaProgrammer:DavidCoxCinemaCoordinator:TejinderJouhalCurators:RichardBirkett,CharlotteBonham-CarterLearningCurator:GemmaTortellaLearningCoordinator:VickyCarmichaelTalksProgrammers:EkowEshun,GinoBrignoliGalleryManager:TrevorHallPressOfficer:JenniferByrneEditionsManager:VickySteerGalleryAssistants:CorinneCalder,PaulGillespie,LeahLovett,GeorgeVasey
ICAPatrons:MarlonAbela,Ayling&Conroy,NasserAzam,KevinBaker,KathyBurnham,DimitrisDaskalopoulos,FredDorfman,GeorgeDragonas,PeterDubens,GrahamEdwards,DeniseEsfandi,JulesandBarbaraFarber,CharlesFinch,GerryFox,TierneyGearon,DavidKotler,EvgenyLebedev,PatrickLong,MichelleMcKeown,MonicaO’Neill,YanaPeel,GuyPerricone,BlankaandVedranPerse,EddyPirard,NicolaPlant,StinaRichardson,SpasRoussev,JohnScott,AmirShariat,NadjaSwarovski,ManuelaWirth,AnitaZabludowicz
Cover:OscarTuazon,AnotherNamelessVentureGoneWrong,2009.Installationview,Støperet/HaugarVestfoldArtMuseum,TønsbergPhotographer:VegardKleven
p.5:OscarTuazon,Untitled,2010.Installationview,KunsthalleBern.Photographer:DominiqueUldry
….anti-anti art, non-non-art, non-expressionist, non-imagist,
non-surrealist, non-primitivist, non-fauvist, non-futurist,
non-figurative, non-objective, non-subjective, non-action,
non-romantic, non-visionary, non-imaginative, non-mythical,
non-organic, non-vitalist, non-violent, non-vulgar, non-naturalist,
non-supernaturalist, anti-accident, anti-brute-junk-pop-folk-art,
non-local, non-regionalist, non-nationalist, non-representational,
non-poetic, non-dramatic, non-entertainment, non-naïve,
non-barbaric, non-nomadic, non-rural, non-eccentric, non-racist,
non-commercial, non-linear, non-diagrammatic, non-tachist,
non-informal, non-irregular, non-sculptural, non-architectural,
non-mural, non-decorative, non-colorist, non-ready-made,
non-spontaneous, non-irrational, non-sensational, non-impulsive,
non-physical, non-technical, non-asymmetrical, non-gesticulating,
non-gesturing, anti-happening, non-mannerist, non-plastic
non-relational, non-venal, non-calligraphic
…… pure, purist, puritan, puritanical, protestant, passivist,
rationalist, perfectionist, platonic, negativist, abstract, fine,
free, right, absolute, absolutist, academic, academicist, dogmatic,
domatistic, aesthetic, aestheticist, moral, moralist, moralistic,
priestly, islamicist, iconoclastic, iconoclasticistic, classicist,
classicistic, priestly, hermetic, separatist, exclusivist,
idealist, idealistic, mandarinist, byzantinist, traditionalist,
conventionalist, historicist, determinist, programmatic,
transcendent, formalist, extremist, formalistic, detached,
disinterested, meaningless, formless, colorless, lineless,
spaceless, lightless, timeless, deathless, lifeless, breathless,
cold, empty, sterile, dull, monotonous, repetitious, rigid,
intellectual, inhuman, dehumanized, unintelligible, sophisticated,
uninteresting no paint-caricaturings, no-scumble-bumpkinism, no
personality-picturesqueness, no texturing-gesturings, no Dadaism,
popism, no duchampism, no romanticist-tricks-of-the-trade, no pop,
no poop, no pope, no corn, no brushwork-bravura, no janisisms, no
jobberies, no qualities, no professional racketeering,
marketeering, no amateur-fun-thinging-recreational-area no
delirium-trimmings, no kicking-the-effigy no action-arena-canvas
and careerism no nature-mending, reality-reducing, life-inspiring,
society-reflecting, universe insighting, zeit-geisting no
good-timing and fun-thinging
jackpot boxering, juke-box hit-paradecamaraderie
AdReinhardt,‘[ONNEGATION]’,Art-as-Art:TheSelectedWritingsofAdReinhardt,ed.BarbaraRose,UniversityofCaliforniaPress,1991
[on negation] colophon
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intRoduction 3
TheICAwelcomesyoutothepagesofthesixthissueofROLAND,whichmovestoanewformatinordertofeaturehighlightsfromacrosstheinstitute’sprogramme.Thepublicationisdividedintosections
that address our activities occurring between June
andAugustincluding:asoloexhibitionbyParisbasedartistOscarTua-zon,aneventfocusingonpost-punkbandGangofFour,asympo-siumonthepoliticsofcommunity,
therelease inourcinemaofHarmonyKorine’sTrashHumpers, and theLondon
InternationalFestivalofTheatre.
Eachsectioncontainsanintroduction,alongsideadditionalmaterialfromawiderangeofauthors,artistsandcommentators,providingabroadcontextwithinwhichtoviewthefeaturedproj-ect.ThepublicationalsoincludesalookbackatourrecentlearningprojectMashUp,
andafinal sectiondevoted
toanartist’sprojectintendedtobeexperiencedthroughthepublishedformat;inthisissuewefeatureashortstoryfromwriterMarkvonSchlegell.
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 20104
Located in the ICA’s ground floor gallery, but extending beyond
the physical confines of this space, this exhibition is the first
solo presentation in a British public gallery of work by Oscar
Tuazon, a US-born, Paris-based artist, writer and curator. Tuazon’s
artwork is largely sculptural in nature, tak-ing on a formal
language situated between architecture, Minimalist art and an
aesthetic peculiar to the utilitarian constructions of outsider
communities. Comprised of a com-bination of natural and industrial
materi-als, Tuazon’s structures create tension both between their
physical parts and with the spaces they inhabit. Adopting the
problems and materi-als of structural engineering and hands-on
construction, Tuazon’s intervention in the ICA building is
comprised of a number of repeating modular units, made from large
wooden beams and steel fittings. The struc-ture pushes at the
boundaries of the gallery space, forcing it to adapt and to
reengineer itself in order to accommodate the work. Built on site
and without plans, the result-ing mesh of struts and columns has an
im-provised, precarious quality that suggests the artwork’s
struggle for autonomy. This is an object potentially freed from the
con-straining rules of architecture and art, an object that can
survive on its own, without a roof overhead or a structure to house
it, or even someone to see it. The ICA installation is an extension
of Tuazon’s long-standing interest in how the built environment is
redefined and rede-signed by the act of inhabitation. Drawing on
the methodology of Henry David Tho-reau, put forward in his
philosophical trea-tise, Walden (1854), Tuazon’s previous works
have confronted nature and architecture to suggest that a
particular lifestyle can manu-facture the space around it. The
develop-ment of a structure that surrounds the view-er, as opposed
to existing on a human scale, constitutes a new trajectory for
Tuazon that he first fully explored in an exhibition at the
Kunsthalle Bern in Switzerland earlier in 2010. At the ICA, this
strand of his work continues to grow, with the structure evolv-ing
in and negotiating with the space in which it is situated.
Oscar Tuazon was born in 1975 in Seattle, Washington, USA. He
moved to Paris in 2007 and co-founded the artist-run collective and
gallery, castillo/corrales. His numerous solo shows include
Kunsthalle Bern (2010), Parc Saint Léger – Centre d’art
contemporain (2010), Centre international d’art et du pay-sage de
l’île de Vassivière (2009), Künstler-haus Stuttgart (2009) and
David Roberts Foundation, London (2009). The exhibition, curated by
the ICA’s Charlotte Bonham-Carter, will coincide with the release
of a comprehensive catalogue on Tuazon’s work, published by
Kunsthalle Bern, Do.Pe. Press, Paraguay Press, Centre international
d’art et du paysage de l’île de Vassivière and Parc Saint Léger –
Centre d’art contemporain. The exhibition is also accompanied by a
series of events and a limited edition print; for more information
on these, please visit: www.ica.org.uk/oscartuazon
oscaR tuazonMy Mistake
—
4 June – 15 August
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 20106
oscaR tuazon’s abstRact Violence
—philippe piRotte
Thereisneverastorybehindthesculptures,thestructures,some-thingyouneedtoknowinordertounderstandthemorseethem.ImighthavesomethinginmindwhileIambuilding,butIdon’tsharethat;thatisnotpartofthework.TomeitisdistractingtobetoldwhatIamlookingat.Idon’tthinkstorieshaveaplaceinsculpture.Ideasdon’thaveaplaceinsculpture.Idon’thaveanyideas–Ijustgotowork.Ideasgetintheway.–OscarTuazon1
OscarTuazon’sprojectattheICAisrootedinthreerecentexhibi-tions of
hiswork in France and Switzerland.At the
KunsthalleBern,hebuiltamodularstructureofwoodenbeams,whichencom-passedthewholegallery.Basedoncertainprinciplesofgeometry,he
repeatedhis initial sculpture five times, cutting through
thewallsofthebuildinginanincreasinglycomplexinteractionwiththespace,whichobstructedtheverylogicofthesculpture’spro-gression.InBern,visitorswereremindedofpreviousexhibitionsofSolLewitt’swork,whichtookplaceintheKunsthalleBernin1989and1992,aswellashisparticipationintheconsequentialgroup
exhibition in 1969 (which later toured to the Institute
ofContemporaryArts,London),WhenAttitudeBecomesForm.TheICAinstallationalsostartswithamodule,whichtheartistsubjectstovarious
declensions and repetitions, pursuing a certain logic
adabsurdum.Thisinsistenceonfollowingthelogicofthework,onsuppressingtheaestheticdimensionandworkingblind,iswhatdrawsTuazontoLeWitt’sapproach.
Whenfirstdetermining thebasic formof thepiece,Tuazonstages a
confrontation with the context of its production. An
the spiRit oFadhocism
—chaRles jencks
& nathan silVeR
Adhocmeans‘forthis’specificneedorpurpose.
Aneediscommontoalllivingthings;onlymenhavehigherpurposes.Buttheseneedsandpurposesarenormallyfrustratedbythegreattimeandenergyexpendedintheirrealisation.
Apurposeimmediatelyfulfilledistheidealofadhocism;itcutsthroughtheusualdelayscausedbyspecialisation,bureaucracyandhierarchicalorganisation.
Todayweareimmersedinforcesandideasthathinderthefulfilmentofhumanpurposes;largecorporationsstan-dardiseandlimitourchoice;philosophiesofbehaviourismconditionpeopletodenytheirpotentialfreedom;‘modernarchi-tecture’becomestheconventionfor‘goodtaste’andanexcusetodenythepluralityofactualneeds.
Butanewmodeofdirectactionisemerging,therebirthofademocraticmodeandstyle,whereeveryonecancreatehispersonalenvironmentoutofimpersonalsubsystems,whethertheyareneworold,modernorantique.Byrealis-inghisimmediateneeds,bycombiningadhocparts,theindividualcreates,sus-tainsandtranscendshimself.Shapingthelocalenvironmenttowardsdesiredendsisakeytomentalhealth;thepresentenvironment,blankandunresponsive,isakeytoidiocyandbrainwashing.
Urgency and
purposeThephraseadhoc,meaning‘forthis’specificpurpose,revealsthedesireforimmediateandpurposefulactionthatpermeateseverydaylife.Oneisconstantlyinvolvedinsmall-scaleactivitiesthathaveanimmediateendinview:togetoutofbedinthemorning,toreplenishthedigestivestock,toworkonsomethingsignificant,etc.Lifeisfilledwithsuchgoal-directedactions,varyingfromthetrivialtotheprofound,manyofwhicharediscontinuousorunrelatedtoeachother.Twotypicalusesofthephraseadhocbringoutthisvariablebutpurposefulnatureofhumanactivity:
—Left-over,fermentingsoupadded ad-hoctospaghettiimprovesits
vapidtaste.
and
—TheAdHocCommitteetoEndtheWar inVietnamwasformedforthespecific
goalofendingthatwarandwilldisap- pearwhenitsgoaldoes.
Thesetwostatementsdistinguishadhocismfromrandom,undirectedorhaphazardactionwithwhichitissometimesconfused.Butifadhocismisindeedpurposeful,howdoesitdifferfromotherkindsofdirectedbehaviour?Basically,adhocismconsistsofageneral
andlooseapproachtoaproblemratherthanatightandsystematicone.Thus,seventeenth-centuryboat-builderswentintotheforesttocutready-made‘subsystems’fromthetrees,combiningthemadhoctoconstructships.Inthesecombinations,becausethesubsystemswerenottailor-madefortheirnewrole,therewasalotofextraneousmaterialleftover,whichlaterhadtobecutaway.Thecharacteristicadhocamalgamationcontainsmuchthatisinessential,much
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oscaR tuazon / jencks & silVeR, piRotte 7
importantpartofhisstrategyisthathemustworkonsite.Thisdoesnotmeanthesameasmakingsite-specificart,sinceTuazonseemstodenythesite,annihilatingtheexistingspaceandenter-ingintoakindofcombatwithit.Beforeashow,hewillmoveintotheexhibitionspacefordays,sometimesweeks,livingthereandoccupyingthesite.Howtheworkfunctionsandwhatitcomestolooklikeisdetermined,toalargeextent,bythisprocess.Toputitintheartist’sownwords:“mybasicworkingtemplateisalwaysmovingintoaspace,fill[ing]itup,push[ing]ittillsomethinggoeswrong.
I think about itmore like sex.That’s theway I
thoughtaboutthepieceinBern:itistwostructuresfuckingeachother.”2EquallyimportantforTuazonistodeveloparelationshipwiththepeoplewhoalready
inhabit thespace– thecurator, the
techni-ciansandthegallerystaff–althoughhedoesnotwishthemtoknowinadvancewhattheprojectwilllooklikeintheend.
Evenif thereisnoaudiencewhileheis
installingthework,Tuazonmakesa‘performative’jumpintoanunknownmentalspaceinordertoconceive,develop,executeandinstallthepiece.Thesedifferentactionsarecondensedintoaveryshortperiodoftimesothattheyalltakeplacesimultaneously,precludingthepossibilityofthe‘executionofaconcept’.Asaresult,thepiecedevelopsasen-sibilitythatisveryfarremovedfromaMinimalistorConceptualaesthetic.Thereisakindofperformativeenergycontainedinthework,andthewholeprocessofmakingit,
includingmistakes,
isleftvisibleinthefinishedpiece.Infact,TuazonseestheICApieceasabody;thefinalreferentoftheworkisn’tanidea,butaperson,avoice,aphysicalbody.
Farfromdesigningsomethingtobefabricatedoroutsourced,Tuazonlikestothinkwithhishands.Theproductionprocesstakesprecedenceovertheconceptualprocess:“Myworkcomesentirelyfromanengagementwiththespecificconditionsofitsproduction,andnaturally,thereareallkindsofsocial,economic,andphysicalforcesthatintersectinaparticularprojectandleavetheirmarksonit.ButIreallydon’ttrustthedeclarativepotentialofanartwork,orinanycase,Idon’tthinkIpersonallyhaveanythingtosayabout
thatisfortuitousandredundant.Butifitisnotasrefinedandpreciseasotherkindsofpurposefulaction,thenatleastitismoreopen,suggestiveandrichinpossibilities.Theextraneousmaterialsug-gestsnewuses,whereastheperfectedandrefinedconstructionisusuallyconfinedtoitsspecifiedends.
Perhapstheoldestandsimplestmethodofcreationconsistsofcombin-ingreadilyavailablesubsystemsadhoc,sinceitisalwayseasiertoworkwith
whatisfamiliarandathandthanwhatisremovedinspaceandtime.Atanyrate,thisisthecharacteristicmodeofcreationintribalcultures:thecreationofmasks,clothing,weaponsandshelterfromthematerialsavailable,suchasbone,shell,wood,hair,etc.TheanthropologistClaudeLévi-StrausshasdiscussedthisactivityunderitscommonFrenchlabel,bricolage:
…the‘bricoleur’isstillsomeonewhoworkswithhandsandusesdevious
meanscomparedtothoseofacraftsman...…The‘bricoleur’isadeptatperformingalargenumberofdiversetasks;but,unliketheengineer,hedoesnotsubordinateeachofthemtotheavailabilityofrawmaterialsandtoolsconceivedandpro-curedforthepurposeoftheproject.Hisuniverseofinstrumentsisclosedandtherulesofhisgamearealwaystomakedowith‘whateverisathand’…theengineerisalwaystryingtomakehiswayoutofandgobeyondtheconstraintsimposedbyaparticularstateofcivilizationwhilethe‘bricoleur’byinclinationornecessityalwaysremainswithinthem.1
Thedistinctionbetweenbricolageandengineeringorscienceisoneofdegreeandintentionratherthankindorquality.Boththebricoleurandthescientistaremotivatedbyasearchaftertruthanddealequallyrigorouslywithfacts.Theyareequallyobjective.Bothhavetomakeuseofpre-existingsubsystems,butwhilethescientisttriestoexpandhisinitialsetofresources,thebricoleurstickswithhisexistingresourcesaslongashepossiblycan.Thedistinctionisbetweenappro-priatenessandurgency.Thescientistisintentonusingthetoolsandhypothesisappropriatetohisjob,whereasthebri-coleuroradhocistisintentonundertak-inghisjobimmediately,withwhateverresourcesareavailable.Botharegoal-orientedinageneralway.
ExcerptfromCharlesJencks&NathanSilver,‘TheSpiritofAdhocism’,Adhocism,TheCaseforImprovisation,MartinSecker&WarburgLimited,1972,pp.15–17,19–20.
1. ClaudeLévi-Strauss,TheSavageMind,Weidenfeld
andNicholson,1966,pp.16–19.
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 20108
Vonu the seaRch FoR
peRsonal FReedom—
Rayo
Associations,Attitudes,Objectives:Atthemomentthereareveryfewvonu-ans–perhapsseveralhundredinNorthAmerica.Andtheseareinmanydiffer-entplacesandwithdifferentlife-styles.Mostarenotincontactwitheachother.AttimesDrGandIcraveassociationwithmorepeople,notonlyforeconomicbenefitssuchaspoolingoutsidepur-chasesandtrips,butforinteractionwithdifferentminds.Butwehavediscoveredthatassociationwithsheep-peopleorbullshittersonlymakesus‘lonelier’.Suchassociationislikeadrinkofsaltwatertoathirstyman.Wemuchpreferjusttobewithtrees,flowers,birds,brooks–andthefewpeoplewithwhomwesharevaluesandgoals.
ButIdon’tthinkthiswillbeaproblemforlong.Moreandmorepeoplearerejectingtheattitudesandrolesoftheservilesociety.Whileonlyasmallminorityofthewholepopulation,theynumbertensofthousands.Someattemptto‘turnbacktheclock’bymovingtofarmsorsmalltowns.Butruraldwellersareconspicuouslyunfree,sothosewhoreallywantfreedomwillsearchinotherdirections.
Avonuan,tome,isnotjustsomeonelivinginaparticularmanner.Life-stylesmaychange.Alife-stylethatwasvonu100yearsagomaynotbevonutoday;somelife-stylesvonutodaywerenotpossible100yearsagoandmaynotbevonufiftyyearsfromnow.Avonuanissomeonewhoplacesahighvalueonrelativeinvulner-abilitytocoercion–someoneforwhomfreedomisworthafairamount(thoughnotinfinite)ofeffort,inconvenience,discomfort.Toavonuan,vonuisnotjustameanstootherends,norisitanultimateend–likemostqualitiesoflife,andlifeitself,itisboth.Avonuanwillchoosewhateverwayoflivingofferspersonalsovereigntyandwillchangelife-styleagainandagainifnecessary.
Althoughlife-stylemayvary,avonuancanbeidentifiedonlybywhathedoes–especiallybyperseveranceoveralongperiod–notbywhathesays.Wordsarecheap.Thisisnottorejectideology.SomeonewhodoesnotseethroughthemythsoftheStatewillnotforlongremainvonu,ifbygoodfortuneheshouldbecomevonu.Butanti-stateideologyisn’tenough.
Iffreedomwerefree(moreprecisely,ifvonuweregratis),almosteveryone
ethicsorpolitics.”3Hedoesnotmakesketches,modelsorcomputerrenderingsofwhattheexhibitionwillbe,andhehasneverhadastudiopractice.Helikesthepressureofworkingonsite,againstatimeline,againstabudget:“That’swhatIlearnedfromworkinginarchitecture,andinconstruction–theworkisalwayscontingentontheconditionsofproduction.Itisaprocessofadaptation.Youtrytofindthelimitsofthebudget,thelimitsofthesite,whatthepeople
you’reworkingwith are capable of, and the form of
theworkisdeterminedbyhowyoumanagethosefactors.Idon’tstartwithaconcept,Istartwiththeconditionsandlettheconditionsdeterminetheformasmuchaspossible.”4
Through this method of working, Tuazon illustrates how
abuildingisdefinedbywhathappensinsideit,notbyitsdesign.Heisinterestedinhowaparticularwayoflivingcanalterthespacearoundit.ThisdesiretomoveintothespaceandalteritsdynamicsrecallsAllanKaprow’shappeningPushandPull:aFurnitureComedyforHansHoffmann,whichaimedtocompletelychangethemoodandcharacterofanexistingspace.5However,Tuazondoesn’tcon-siderhisworkasarchitectureorevenasanarchitecturalmetaphor.Hebelievesthatitisimpossibletoworkarchitecturallyinanexhi-bitionspace,because“alltheproblemsthatarchitectureneedstosolvehavealreadybeensolved:there’salreadyaroofoverhead;aheatingsystem;plumbing;wallsandafloor.Thefunctionalimper-ativeofarchitectureiswhat’sinterestingaboutit,andwhenthoseproblemsaresolvedwhatareyouleftwith?Youcanmakemod-els,prototypes,youcantestthingsout,butyoucan’trecreatetheurgencyofhavingtosolvearealproblem.”6Tuazon’strueconcerniswhathappensifanartworkchallengesthebuilding.
InhisexhibitionattheICA,Tuazontreatsthebuildingasawhole,making
awork that occupies the gallery’s various spacessimultaneously.At
the same time,heattacks the ideaofa spaceforart,and thenotion
thatanybuildingcaneveraccommodatean artwork. While the Kunsthalle
Bern, designed in 1911, stillbears the tracesofabourgeoishome, the
ICA isaverydifferentspace, reflecting the radical change in
presumptions ofwhat an
wouldbefree(vonu).Butfreedomisn’tfree;itisquiteexpensiveandwilllikelyremaincostlyintheforeseeablefuture.Mostpeoplepresentlyalivedonotvaluevonuverymuch.Onereason,perhaps,isthatduringthousandsofyearsofpre-technologicalagriculture,servilityhadasurvivalvalue.Duringthisperiodcon-ventionalfarmingwasthemostefficientwayofproducingfood.Anditisdifficulttoconceiveofalife-stylemoresubjecttocoercionthanthatofthetraditional
farmer;notonlyishevisibleandusu-allyseparatedfromhisfellows,but‘his’homeandlandareespeciallyvulnerabletoattack.Servilitywasnotgenerallypro-survivalpriortoagriculture.WhenNorthAmericawas‘settled’,fewofthenatives,whoweremostlyhunters/foragers,weresuccessfullyenslaved.Toobtainobedientsubjectsthebludghadtobringslavesandindenturedservantsfromthemoreagrar-iansocietiesofWestAfricaandEurope.
Idon’tknowifservilityisdue
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oscaR tuazon / Rayo, piRotte 9
convertingmostorganiccompoundsintomostotherorganiccompounds.Loadthehopperwithdeadleavesorsawdust,inserttheproperprogramme,waitafewdays,andoutcomefoodwafersthatareatleastasnutritiousandtastyasmostofthestuffsoldinsupermarketstoday.Insertdifferentprogrammesandoutcomevariousplasticsforconstructionandclothing.Ofcourse,thisisjustoneapproach.MaybeIwillmodifymydigestivetracttoconvertcellu-losetosugar.MaybeIwilldevelophardiervarietiesoftraditionalfoodplantsabletogrowwildwithlittleassistance,aswellasmorepalatablevarietiesofwildplants.Fortheimmediatefuture,maybemini-grow-holesaretheway.Inanycase,Idon’tthinkthatfarmingisthewaveofthefuture.
Withthedeclineofagriculture,servilitylosessurvivalvalue.Improvingcommunicationhasthesameeffect–peoplewillnolongerneedtocrowdintocitiesorbevisibleanywheretoworkandplaytogether.Considerthepotentialitiesofpseudo-random-noiseradiotransmis-sion–codedtransmissiondetectableonlywithmatchingreceivers.Eventhatinstitutionrunamok,thecontemporaryState,hasthiseffect:itisitsmostgullibleandeasilyintimidatedsubjectswhoaremostlikelytobekilledinitswars.SoIthinkinthelongrun,peoplewhoplaceahighvalueonpersonal/smallgroupsover-eigntywillbecomealargerproportionofthehumanpopulation.
Vonu,whiledifficult,iseasiernowthanithasbeensincetheNeolithicperiod.Perhapsashighasoneortwopercentofthepopulation,throughacci-dentsofheredityandenvironment,havevaluesandabilitiessufficienttoachieveit.Tobecomevonuwemustdisentangleourselvesfromthosewhowon’torcan’tachieveit–rejectall‘reform-society-as-a-whole’schemes,putasideutopiandreamsofworld-widefreesocieties,andgetwithourselvesandeachother–buildourvonuumsandvonuistmini-cultures.
PossiblyIunderestimatethepoten-tialofexistinghumans.Possiblymostpeopledovaluevonuandcanachieveit.Ifso,wearemoreapttohelpthembecomefreebybecomingfreeourselvesandshowingtheway,thanbyjoiningpoliticalcrusades.Politicalreform/revo-lution/re-educationhasbeenattemptedthousandsoftimesinhundredsofsitu-ationsoverhundredsofcenturies,butatmostchangesonlyfacesandslogans.Anysortofpoliticalmovementbecomesacontestincoercionandmanipula-tion.Pastcrusadesfailednotbecauseof‘impuremotives’,‘betrayal’,or‘defectsinphilosophy’(whyisitinvariablydefects,notthegoodelements,thatcometopredominate?)butbecauseoftheirverynature.Functiondeterminesform,means
mostlytogeneticinheritance,toculturalbackgroundortoslave-schooltraining.Mostlikelyitisaninteractionofallthree.ButIdon’tbelievethatanyamountof‘education’(propagandising)willchangetheattitudes/values/intelligenceofmostadults.NordoIbelievethatthemajoritycanbemanipulatedintoa‘freesociety’bysomeeliteofwould-bephilosopherkings.Suchaneffortwill,atmost,onlychangetherulers.Solongasmostpeoplecanbeeasilymanipulated,theywillbe
exhibitionspaceisorshouldbesincetheearly1900s.However,inbothcases,theproblemsthatTuazonconfrontsarethesame.Exhi-bitionspacesarelargelydefinedbyemptyspace.Tuazonaddressesthisdefiningcharacteristicfromaphysicalstandpoint,workinginaway
that creates significant structural problems for the
build-ingitself.Ifthewallsgetintheway,forexample,hecutsthroughthem.Makinganartworkthatrequiressomere-engineeringofthebuilding
is a method of shifting the dynamic between artworkandinstitution.
The artwork’s confrontationwith the space is a struggle
forautonomy.Tuazon’searlierworkwasoftenengagedwithatraditionof DIY
or survivalist architecture, taking inspiration from
hippycommunessuchasDropCity.Hefoundtheseschemesinterestingasarchitecture,andsawthemasakindofstrugglewiththeideaofautonomy,a(perhapsunknowing)attempttobeanalogousto(andmoreinterestingthan)whatwashappeningintheartworldinthe1970s.Hesays,“tomethosekindofprojectswerelikeanuncon-sciouscritiqueofSmithsonorDeMaria–insteadoftalkingaboutit,
theywere living itout.Youcouldcall
it‘institutionalcritiquefromtheoutside.’AndIguessI’veabsorbedsomeofthatwork,notsomuchinformaltermsbutasakindofstrategy.”7
In2009Tuazonmadeapiece,calledAThing,aworkthatheconsiderstobeaturningpointinhispractice.Theworkissmallin
relation tohis structuralpieces,about the sizeofaperson.
Itdealswithafunctionalproblemandusesthelanguageofdesigninacompletelyabstractway.Awoodenstructurewithtwolampsattached
to it, in someways it is a‘useful’ object.However, as
alamp,itdoesn’tfunctionwell:somewhatunwieldy,itcastsaveryharsh,brightlight.But,atthesametime,thepresenceofthelampsprevents
it frombeingperceivedasanartwork.Thus it is
just‘athing’.Tuazonalwaystriestopushhisworktowardsabstractioninthisway,becauseforhim,theideaofabstractionisonlyeverpos-sibleinrelationtofunction.
WhileTuazon’sprojectfortheICAlookscompletelydifferentfrom,andisonafarlargerscalethan,TheThing,thelogicbehind
manipulatedfortheaggrandisementofthemanipulators.
Traditionalagricultureisonthewayout.(Atthemoment,quiteanumberofpeopleareplayingreturn-to-ye-olde-homesteadgames,butfewareproducingenoughfoodeventofeedthemselves.)Barringacatastropheofsufficientmag-nitudetodestroytechnologyworld-wide,Ipredictthatwithinafewdecadestherewillbeinexpensive,light-weight,mostlyautomatedbio-chemicaldevicescapableof
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201010
bothworksisthesame.WheretheprojectinLondonsucceedsfortheartist,isinthefactthatthestructurehasadynamicrelation-shiptothebuildingitself.Aswiththelamp,thereisanaggressiveinsistenceonautonomy–thesculptureissimplytoobigforthebuilding.Atthesametime,theformofthestructureisalmostcom-pletelydeterminedbythebuildingitself:theload-bearingcapacityofthefloors,theheightofthedoors,thedepthofthewalls,etc.
Tuazonwasborninageodesicdome,whicheventuallycametobeusedasahorsebarn;coincidentally,thiswasalsothefateofthefamousDropCitydomes,mostofwhichwerelatertorndown.Whenhewentbacktovisitthedomeabouttenyearsago,hefoundthattimehadnotbeenkindtoit.Physicalrealityandtheprocessof
aging had denied any kind of utopian ideal thatmight oncehave been
invested in that form.Tuazon tries toworkwith
theentropiccharacteristicsofnaturalmaterialsasmuchashecaninordertoshowthedisruptiveimpactthatinstallationsorsculpturescanhaveonthespacearoundthem.Butheisnotonlyinterestedinthepossibilityofstructuralfailure.Ultimately,hewantstomakesomethingthat’salive,present,palpableandreal–alivingthingandsimultaneouslyadyingthing.Evenifherefusesallnarrativesuggestionsorcontexts,hisworkreferencesakindofsci-fidysto-piainwhichhepositsanacceptanceofafailingsystem,likeanail-ingspaceship,leaking,crackingandthreateningtodestroyitself.
1. Thistextislargelybasedon‘OscarTuazonin
ConversationwithChiaraParisi,SandraPatron
andPhilippePirotte’,inOscarTuazon,Paraguay
PressandDo.Pe.Pressinconjunctionwith
KunsthalleBern,LeCentreinternational
d’artetdupaysagedel’îledeVassivièreand
ParcSaintLéger–Centred’ArtContemporain, 2010(forthcoming)2. Ibid.3.
Ibid.4. Ibid.5. AllanKaprow’s‘score’forPushAndPull
containsthefollowingpassage,whichis
revealinginthisregard:“Thinkofsubletting
someone’sapartment.Howcanyougetridof
thefellowwhenheisineverypieceof
furniture,everyarrangement?Doyoulike
livingwithhim?Imagineitunfurnished.What
wouldyoudo–buysomethings(ifso,what
style?),scroungesomeoffthestreets,askyour
relativesorfriends(whichwillremindyouof
them?)...Perhapslivewithoutfurniture instead.”6.
TuazoninConversationwithParisi,Patronand Pirotte,op.cit.7.
Ibid.
PhilippePirotteisanarthistorianandDirectoroftheKunsthalleBern.NexttohiscuratorialactivityheissenioradvisorattheRijksakademieforVisualArtsinAmsterdam,andhepublisheswidelyoncontemporaryartandartists.
determineends.TheveryprogrammesoftheStatemostdetestedbypresent‘reformers’arethereforms-gone-to-seedofpastcrusaders.
DrGandIdidnotchooseourwayoflifeprimarilybecauseweexpectanuclearwarorotherapocalypsewithinafewyears.Whilewehaveconsideredpossibilitiesofvariouscatastrophesinourplanning,ifnuclearweaponshadneverbeeninventedwewouldprobablybelivinginmuchthesameway–perhapssomewhatclosertolargecities.Institu-tionalisedcoercion–States–isalong-existingsocialphenomenon;warisonlyitsmostdramaticformofdestruction.Wearestrivingtoreducevulnerabilitytoallformsofcoercionandmaximiseallsatisfactions.
DrGandIwouldliketocontactmorepeoplewithsimilarideas,attitudesandactions.Ifyouarenotintheregion,weinviteletters.Ifyouareintheregion,let’sarrangejointdropsatleast,maybemeetoccasionally.IthinktheLooseOpenAssociation(asLanhasnamedit)isthebestcommunitymodel,atleastatfirst.Anycloserinvolvementsshouldcomeonlyaspeoplegettoknoweachotheroveranextendedtime.
Wearenowabletoprovidesomeonewithafoodstash,shelterandequipmentadequate(mostofthetime)fromMaythroughOctober.Thiswouldbealreadysetupinanattractive,secludedspot–severalmiles(atleast)fromanyhabitation(includingotherVonuans)knowntous.Wecanbringsuppliesandmailoccasionally(onceamonth?)tosomeonewhowantstoremaincompletelyoutofthatsocietyforawhile.Bynextautumnwemaybeabletoprovideyear-roundshelter.Ourpricesarelow,orwewillbarterfortheservices/productswewant.Ofcourse,don’tcometoSiskiyoubecauseafewvonuansarealreadyhere;hoped-forrelationsmightnotworkout.Comeonlyif,likeus,youevaluatetheregionasoptimumforyou.
ExcerptfromRayo,‘ChapterII:ReportonProgressandProblems’,VONUTheSearchforPersonalFreedom,VONULIFE#9,ed.JonFisher,LompanicsUnlimited,pp.103–106.
DrawnfromanarchiveofphotostakenbyOscarTuazonfortheirresonancewithcertainelementsofhispracticeandresearch,theseimagesdepictthehouseofLeslieFeuerbach,outsideofAlbuquerque,NewMexico.>
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oscaR tuazon / Rayo, piRotte, Fend 11
new aRchitectuRe FRom matta-claRk
—peteR Fend
Instead of starting with the premise thatonemustmake a
Building,we startwiththepremisethatthebodyandmindmustsustainablybe
situatedon this gas-envel-opedplanet.
LesLevinemakesacomparisonwithFrankGehry: ifGehry designs a chair,
hethinks of using a certainMaterial to cre-atea chair;
ifMatta-Clarkapproaches
thequestionof“chair,”hestartswiththeques-tion,Howdo I feel
chair-nesswithinme?Moreboldly,doI,inmybody,trulydesiretositinachair?Ifso,how?Thebody,notthe
accommodation for it, comes
first.LevinesaysthatGordon“leftenoughsign-posts”for“whatistheactivitytobedone.”Whatarethese“signposts?”
Ifyouareabody,andifyouaretryingtobuildinrelationtothebody,youwanttocreatelevelswherethebodycanmoveandreposethatareofftheground.Youwanttoget
up above. Youwant to do thiswithinan ionised, oxygenated and
visually richenvironment.Inawaythatisasexhilarat-ing as outdoors,
without the inhibitionsofaBuilding for
theBuilding’sSake,oraChairfortheChair’sSake,oraWallfortheWall’sSake.Ifthereisanyantecedent,itistrees.Shootingupfromtheground,a-gyre,they
splay out energy in canopies
above.Wearenotbuilding‘Architecture’,asPhilipJohnson required. We
are following theenergypatterns exudedby grovesof
treesandbushes,asoriginalhumansdid.Matta-Clark‘saw’thesewithhis1972drawingsofplants.Hewouldtry,athisdeathsixyearslater,
to be ‘making’ these with buoyant,up-risingstructures.
Thebody,as
thefirsthouse,firsthousingofthesoul,respires.Itstandsupbyseveralprocessesatonce:1.
gasinflation2. liquidfillingandinflation3.
counter-balancingofseparately suspendedweights4.
bridgingbetweenseparatecontacts withtheground5.
elasticstretchingandcontractingof theskins
These facts can be extended to the
struc-turesbuiltaround.Toacademics,thisisthebreakingofwalls.Tothoseinthebanishedcampofartistsattackingarchitecturalques-tions,it’scalledinjectingtheselfintospace.Chris
Burden, and afterwards
performerslikeSkipArnold,haveenactedthis.
VocabulaRy FRom matta-claRk
1. Light-GasSuspension(byhelium, byhot‘air’,bysun)2.
Inflation(ofanelasticskin)3. CounterbalancedWeights(inlinewith
SerraanddiSuvero)4. Narrow(Pilotis)Foundation
(forstraddling,highabove)5. MembranesinsteadofWalls(aload
neednotbeborneup)
‘Signposts’ from Matta-Clark’s work
canindicatethestructuralpractices,thebody-in-spacemovementandextensionpractices,which
can yield Built Things. Not build-ings exactly, but things to
accommodate
the body’s needs. The cityscape becomespliable.
Whatevermightbedonewiththelastthree items above results from
conditionspermitting lightweight, site-straddling,jungle-gym
assembling structures, all bypneumatic mediation between
In-Doorsand Out-Doors. The kick-off task
wouldbeconstructionofitemsoneandtwo.Theballoon building, as
Matta-Clark labelledit,wouldexploitthefactthatacommunitybreathes, a
community exhales, and thisoutputis…hotair.
Excerpt from Peter Fend, ‘New Architecture fromMatta-Clark’,
Reorganizing Structure by
DrawingThroughIt/ZeichnungBeiGordonMatta-Clark,Gen-eraliFoundation,1997,pp.49–52.
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201012
As part of the ICA’s ongoing series of debates that re-address
big themes through the prism of contemporary discourse, we host The
Trouble with Society, a discussion between philosopher, theologian
and politi-cal thinker Phillip Blond, Stewart Wallis, the executive
director of the New Econom-ics Foundation, and author and
journalist Mark Vernon. In its short existence so far, the
twenty-first century has wrought some novel social pressures: the
impact of globalisation on patterns of migration and employment;
the dilemmas of faith and politics thrown up by 9/11; the threat to
civil liberties prompted by the intensity of CCTV surveillance
across our public spaces; the potential disappear-ance of our
private identities into the infor-mation banks of social-media
sites and the corporations that run them. For all of these
questions, we look to our politicians to frame an answer and
suggest the ways that we, as a society, should respond. Yet in the
wake of the expenses scandal, disenchant-ment with the established
system has never been higher, or trust in our elected
repre-sentatives lower. It’s perhaps not surprising then that the
recent focus in political ideas has shifted from the relative
impotence of organised politics to the potential of ordi-nary
people to change society. Certainly this is a subject that’s been
exercising think tanks and policy groups from across the political
spectrum. Many of these groups are currently running research
projects investigating the value of
civic engagement as the means to create a shared sense of
identity and endeavour in our neighbourhoods and communities. This
work is taking place on the political left with groups like Demos
and the Insti-tute for Public Policy Research; on the right with
Iain Duncan Smith’s Centre for Social Justice; and in the centre
with the politi-cally independent Royal Society of the Arts and its
Citizen Power initiative, aimed at “cultivating civic behaviour and
collective action”. This research has begun to cross over into
mainstream party politics lending fuel to David Cameron’s otherwise
nebulous concept of the “big society”, and spurring Gordon Brown to
the most impassioned speech of his election campaign, when he
addressed a 2,500-strong gathering of com-munity organisers in the
last days before the polls opened. This revisiting of the
philosophy of people-power is a nascent one. It could yet prove no
more than the latest political fad. And yet, what’s compelling here
is the sud-den flowering of utopic optimism within many of these
projects; the hope that by bringing ordinary people together around
common goals amazing things can happen. This perceived wave of
community spirit raises innumerable questions around how we
position ourselves in relation to society and the effects of market
forces upon our lives. Is the notion of a loss of community a
fallacy? And in an era of austerity, is a politi-cal investment in
community ideals merely a smokescreen for cuts to public
services?
24 June
the tRouble with society
—
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the tRouble with society / blond, nancy 13
an inopeRatiVe community
—jean-luc nancy
Thefirsttaskinunderstandingwhatisatstakehereconsistsinfocusingonthehorizonbehindus.Thismeansquestion-ingthebreakdownincommunitythatsupposedlyengenderedthemodernera.TheconsciousnessofthisordealbelongstoRousseau,whofiguredasocietythatexperiencedoracknowledgedthelossordegradationofacommunitarian(andcommunicative)intimacy–asocietyproducing,ofnecessity,thesolitaryfigure,butonewhosedesireandinten-tionwastoproducethecitizenofafreesovereigncommunity.WhereaspoliticaltheoreticiansprecedinghimhadthoughtmainlyintermsoftheinstitutionofaState,ortheregulationofasociety,Rousseau,althoughheborrowedagreatdealfromthem,wasperhapsthefirstthinkerofcommunity,ormoreexactly,thefirsttoexperiencethequestionofsocietyasanuneasinessdirectedtowardthecommunity,andastheconscious-nessofa(perhapsirreparable)ruptureinthiscommunity.ThisconsciousnesswouldsubsequentlybeinheritedbytheRomantics,andbyHegelinThePhenom-enologyofSpirit
:thelastfigureofspirit,beforetheassumptionofallthefiguresandofhistoryintoabsoluteknowledge,isthatwhichcleavescommunity(whichforHegelfiguresthesplitinreligion).Untilthisdayhistoryhasbeenthoughtonthebasisofalostcommunity–onetoberegainedorreconstituted.
Thelast,orbroken,communitycanbeexemplifiedinallkindsofways,byallkindsofparadigms:thenaturalfamily,theAtheniancity,theRomanRepublic,thefirstChristiancommunity,corporations,communes,orbrotherhoods–alwaysitisamatterofalostageinwhichcommu-nitywaswovenoftight,harmonious,andinfrangiblebondsandinwhichaboveallitplayedbacktoitself,throughitsinsti-tutions,itsrituals,anditssymbols,therepresentation,indeedthelivingoffering,ofitsownimmanentunity,intimacy,andautonomy.Distinctfromsociety(whichisasimpleassociationanddivisionofforcesandneeds)andopposedtoempire(whichdissolvescommunitybysubmittingitspeoplestoitsarmsandtoitsglory),com-munityisnotonlyintimatecommunica-tionbetweenitsmembers,butalsoitsorganiccommunionwithitsownessence.Itisconstitutednotonlybyafairdistri-butionoftasksandgoods,orbyahappy
Red toRy—
phillip blond
Thelossofourcultureisevincedinotherways.PerhapsitisbestunderstoodasthedisappearanceofBritishcivilsociety.Bycivilsoci-etyIconnoteeverythingthatordinarycitizensdothatisnotreduc-ibletotheimposedactivitiesofthecentralstateorthecompulsionanddeterminationofthemarketplace.Sodefined,itappearsthatwearenowaflatsociety.BythisImeanthatthereareonlytwopowers
in our country: the state and themarketplace.All
othersourcesofindependentautonomouspowerhavebeencrushed.Wenolongerhave,inanyeffectiveindependentway,localgovernment,churches,tradeunions,cooperativesocieties,publiclyfundededu-cationalinstitutions,civicorganisationsorlocallyorganisedgroupsthatoperateonthebasisofmorethansingleissues.Whateverthesevariousinstitutionsrepresentnow,whattheyembodiedinthepastweremeans
for ordinarypeople to exercisepower.These associ-ationshelped
togive formanddirection tohumanbeings;
theyallowedparentstocrafttheirfamiliesandcitizenstoshapetheircommunities.Nowadays,however,allsuchsourcesofindependentpower
have been eroded; instead, these civil spaces have
eithervanishedtobecomesubject-domainsofthecentralisedstateorthemonopolisedmarket.
Thestateandthemarkethaveadvancedfrombothleftandrightonvirtuallyalltheself-governingandindependentdomainsthatpreviouslyconstitutedcivilsocietyinBritain.Byfindingcivilsoci-etyunbearablylocal,uneconomicoruneven,themarketstatewasabletocontrolanddetermineitscharacterandsoabolishgenuineparticipationinsociety.1Thisuncriticalalliancebetweenthestateandthemarket
ishighlypeculiar.
InauniquelyAnglo-Americanfashion,itwasdecidedshortlyafterMrsThatcher’selectionin1979
Asaconcept‘liberalcapitalism’doesn’treallycapturetheextraordinarynatureofthisalliancebetweenpoliticalandfinancialpower.Nordoestheexpressionlaissez-fairecapturethecurrentphenomenon,sinceinthecaseofbothtermsthereisnothingliberalorfreeaboutwhatisgoingon.BetterIthinktotrytocapturetheelementofdriveandcompulsionthatisatworkinthisprocess.
TothatendIshallcallBritainandAmericamarketstates,asthisseemstoencapsulatebetterthecurrentcoercivenatureoftherelationshipbetweensociety,thestateandthemarket.SeePhilipBobbitt,TheShieldofAchilles:WarPeaceandtheCourseofHistory,AlfredA.Knopf,2002.Idonot,however,endorseallofBobbitt’sanalyses
1.
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201014
equilibriumofforcesandauthorities:itismadeupprincipallyofthesharing,diffu-sionorimpregnationofanidentitybyapluralitywhereineachmemberidentifieshimselfonlythroughthesupplementarymediationofhisidentificationwiththelivingbodyofthecommunity.InthemottooftheRepublic,fraternitydesig-natescommunity:themodelofthefamilyandoflove.
Butitisherethatweshouldbecomesuspiciousoftheretrospectiveconsciousnessofthelostcommunityanditsidentity(whetherthisconsciousnessconceivesofitselfaseffectivelyretrospec-tiveorwhether,disregardingtherealitiesofthepast,itconstructsimagesofthispastforthesakeofanidealoraprospec-tivevision).WeshouldbesuspiciousofthisconsciousnessfirstofallbecauseitseemstohaveaccompaniedtheWesternworldfromitsverybeginnings:ateverymomentinitshistory,theOccidenthasgivenitselfovertothenostalgiaforamorearchaiccommunitythathasdisap-peared,andtodeploringalossoffamiliar-ity,fraternityandconviviality.OurhistorybeginswiththedepartureofUlyssesandwiththeonsetofrivalry,dissension,andconspiracyinhispalace.AroundPenelope,whoreweavesthefabricofintimacywith-outevermanagingtocompleteit,pretend-erssetupthewarringandpoliticalsceneofsociety–pureexteriority.
ButthetrueconsciousnessofthelossofcommunityisChristian:thecom-munitydesiredorpinedforbyRousseau,Schlegel,Hegel,thenBak-ouine,Marx,WagnerorMallarmé,isunderstoodascommunion,andcommuniontakesplace,initsprincipleasinitsends,attheheartofthemysticalbodyofChrist.AtthesametimeasitisthemostancientmythoftheWesternworld,communitymightwellbethealtogethermodernthoughtofhumanity’spartakingofdivinelife:thethoughtofahumanbeingpenetratingintopureimmanence.
ExcerptfromJeanLucNancy,AnInoperativeCommunity,UniversityofMinnesotaPress,1991,pp.9–10.
thattheinterestsofthestateandthemarketweresynonymous.Allhersupportersagreedthattofurthertheinterestsofthelatterwehadtorestricttheactivitiesoftheformer,butinordertoextendtheinterestsofthemarket,Thatcherhadtoincreasethepowerofthestate–alogicthatwasonlycompoundedandincreasedbyNewLabour.
Bothmarket and state thus accruedpower in
thenameofdemocracy,andeffectivelyandprogressivelyexcludedordinarycitizensfromeconomicanddemocraticparticipation.Themarkethasbecomecapturedbyproducer
interestsalongwith the state,and,even
thoughbothpoliticalpartieshaveofferedan
ideologythatpretendsthatthereverseistrue,therecanbelittledoubtthatthelegacyofboth,andofthelastthirtyyears,hasbeeneconomicandpolitical
exclusion for themany,
andmassiveandmonopo-lisedenrichmentforthefew. Why the governing
elites in both Britain and America
cre-atedthisstateofaffairsandviewedtheresultingmarketstateasdesirablerequiresexplanation.Thatistobefoundbothinhistoryandideology,whichIwillcometoalittlelater.Now,though,andperhapsforthefirsttimeinalmosttwogenerations,thefinancialmeltdownof2007/8hasgivenusanopportunitytoseethegameasitreallyis.WeseethatthecrisisisdueinnosmallparttotheideologicalandpoliticalcomplicitybetweenThatcherandReganovercapitalcontrols(ortheneedforabandoningthem)andanaivemarketfundamentalismthatallowedthebankstogamethestateandrigthemarket.Norhavemanydemurred(untilnow)fromthecontinuing
fervent advocacy of themarket statebyClinton
andBlairandBushandBrown.Onlynowcanweglimpseanalternative–onethatcanperhapsgiveusatrulyfreemarketandaproperlyparticipatorystate,inwhichcitizensfeelvalued.
ExcerptfromPhillipBlond,RedTory,FaberandFaber,2010,pp.3–5.
PhillipBlondisapoliticalthinker,writerandjournalist.Hefoundedandnowdirectsthethink-tankResPublica,andwritesfortheGuardian,TheTimes,FinancialTimes,theDailyMail,theIndependentandtheSundayTimes.
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the tRouble with society / nancy, blond, VeRnon 15
“Thenation’smoralsarelikeitsteeth:themoredecayedtheyare,themoreithurtstotouchthem.”SonotedGeorgeBernard
Shaw in an observation
thatstillringstrue:iftheword‘moral’feelspainful,
theword‘virtue’makesmostpeoplewince.That’s striking becausevirtues
are merely the skills thatenableustoflourish,ifwehavethem.Courage
and kindness, good judge-ment and justice: they promise
lifelivedwell.Sowhencetherot? The rootproblem, I suspect,
isthatourcurrentmoraldiscourselacksacompellingvisionofwhatitistobehuman.Ethicshasceasedtobeasourceof
inspiration,andinsteadfeels
likeaburden–alimitation.Thisisbecauseit’sbecomewhathasbeensaidofeco-nomics:adismalscience.
On the one hand is the eth-ics of calculation, the weighing upof
one person’s interests againstanother. It’s ethics as a
cost-benefitanalysis, aprocess thathands it overto accountants.This
utilitarianism isan honourable tradition: the originalutilitarians
argued that something
isrightbecauseitincreaseshumanhap-piness.Theproblemisthattheyhadathin
senseofwhathumanhappinessentails–certainmaterialneedsandadecentdoseofqualitypleasures.Thatstrugglestoarticulateanyrichervisionofwhathumansmightbe;
it fails tomakeanyprofoundcallonournature.Today, pleasures abound,
at least
intheWest,andit’sanapproachrunningoutofsteam.Wesensetheremustbemore.Utilitarianismcan’tsaywhat.
Then, on the other hand,
istheethicsofregulation.Thisisethicsasaseriesofresponsibilitiestowhichwe’re
tied as a result of a
contractwe’relockedintobecausewelivewithothers.Itriskshandingethicsovertothelawyers,andhasaviewoflifethatisbureaucratic.Itmakespersonaleth-ics
feel like corporate compliance, aburden– perhaps a necessary
one–butneverasourceofvitalitybecause,again,itdoesnothavethecapacitytoinspire.Itdoesn’taskwhatwecanbe,onlyaddressingwhatweoughttodo,andoftenoughtnottodo.
So where might a new ethicsbe found?Well, a start can be
madebyattendingmorecloselytowhatwehave.Forthey’renotjustdrysystems.
They’remarkedbydeepambivalences,whichare,infact,clues.
Takehumanrights.Rightshavewonmanypeoplemanyfreedoms,andtherhetoricofrightsisverypowerful.Butimplicit
inrightsarelessappeal-ingvaluestoo,particularlywhentheybecome
all-pervasive.When everyoneis claiming this or that by right,
oneperson is pitted against another in aconflict of rights.
Similarly, that cre-ates a culture of grievance in
whichpeopleseethemoraltaskasbeing,inessence, the securing of more
rightsagainst others who would
otherwisetakethemaway.Buthere’saparadox:anindividual’srightsonlymakeadif-ferencetohimorherifgivenbyoth-ers.RobinsonCrusoehadnorightsonhis
desert island because, as
SimoneWeilputit,“Arightwhichgoesunrec-ognisedbyanybodyisnotworthverymuch.”Afirstthought.
A second, related clue comesfrom the values inherent in democ-racy.
An obvious, invaluable
strengthofademocraticcultureisthatitallowseveryone to pursue their
interestsrelatively freely. And yet, asAlexis
deTocquevillenoted,thedemocraticindi-vidualcaneasilyfallintothedelusionthattheyaresufficientlyrichandedu-catedtosupplytheirownneeds.“Suchfolkowenomananythingandhardlyexpectanythingfromanyone”,hewritesin
Democracy in America. “They
formthehabitofthinkingofthemselvesinisolationandimaginethattheirwholedestinyisintheirownhands.”
He’d spotted an old prob-lem. Pericles, the great champion
ofdemocracyinancientAthens,praisedindividual initiative,but
alsowarnedagainst thecitizenwho livesonly
forhimself.Hesaidthatsuchindividualshave no right to be part of the
city-state upon which their
flourishingdepends.Andhehadanounforsuchfolktoo,idiotes–fromwhichwegetawell-knownEnglishword.
In other words, the tensionsinherent in the languageof rights
anddemocracyhighlightsomethingofgreatimportance. To be human is to
be, atonce, independent and dependent.Wecanonlybecome
independentbecauseofourdependency,andviceversa.
Thinkaboutfriendship.Aristo-tlehadagreatdefinitionoffriendship:afriendis“anotherself”,hesaid.Thedefinitionissogoodbecause
it
func-tionsatmultiplelevels.First,afriendisliterally“anotherself”,anotherper-son.Unlikeeroticlove,inwhichthereis
a powerful desire tomeldwith theother, to become wholly
dependentuponanother,thelovecalledfriendshipwants the
friendtobehimorherself.
That’s one reasonwhy friends like
totalk,anddon’tonthewholekiss;andwhytheydon’tmindbeingapartforawhile,somethinglovershate.
Second, a friend is anotherself in the sense that you see your-self
in your friend, and they in you.That mirroring reveals
similarities.It also reveals differences, which
canbepainful.Butanyprofoundconnec-tionbetweenyouandagoodfriendisforged
out of both – you both com-pliment and complement each
other.That’ssomethingofthereciprocityofdependenceandindependenceagain.
Then there’s the third mean-ing of another self, when a
friendbecomesintegraltoyourownsenseofself.Friendsarethenliketwoeyesthattogether
do one thing: both see theworld in the sameway.Or
theybaskineachtheother’sreflectedglory,andfeeleachother’sagony.Wehaveawordforsuchfriends:soulmates–onesoulintwobodies.
Inshort,friendshiptellsusthatwe are not billiard balls that
collideandrebound.Neitherarewelikedropsintheocean,whichlosetheiridentityas
theydissolve.Rather,we are afinesuspension of one another, in
eachother.Wearedependentandindepen-dent. The good life, witnessed
to byfriendship,arisesfrombothprinciples. If that’s right, then our
ethicsis broken for two reasons. First, oneprinciple has come to
dominate overanother. Thus, the ethics of the
freemarketinstructsustolivewhollyself-interested lives – though
it’s worthnoting that to respond to thatexcesswith an opposite,
self-abnegatinginjunction is equally misguided.Rather, we naturally
befriend
our-selves,arguedAristotle,becauseweareclosesttoourselves;butweshoulddosoinordertogetoverourselves,tofor-getourselves.Thereinliesmyfreedom:liberation
from self-obsession to bewithandforothers.
Second,atthesociallevel,thereis a similarmove outwards.A
brokenethics instructs us to live with
eachotherasifwewereforeigners;democ-racy as a company of strangers.
Thatis no mean achievement in a pluralworld. However, it’s a view
of
politicsthatstrugglestobelieveinsocialjusticebecausethatwouldinvolverecognisingthatmyowngoodisimplicitlycaughtup
with the lives of others. If I
onlydesiretolivewithothersinsofarasit’sgood forme, the ethics of
calculationandruleistheresult.
Toputitanotherway,notehowourunderstandingofjustice,today,isdominatedbylegalisticthemes,mostlyof
rights or just deserts.Whereas for
Aristotle, while similar elements
areimportant,justiceismorefundamen-tally derivative of something
else:civicfriendship,orreciprocalgoodwillbetweencitizens. Of
course, Aristotle himselffailed to live up to this ideal in
hisexclusion of slaves and women
fromthecitizenry.Buttheprincipleisclear:friendshipisnotanaddedvalue,itisthebasicsocialvalue.It’swhatmakespolitics
possible. Conducting politicsasifitwereaboutthemanagementofa
collective of strangers is,
accordingtothisreading,unsustainable.Abetterpoliticsisonlypossiblewhenthe
community manifests sympathy.Citizenscanthenbeboundbybondsof
concern, not just obligation.
Theywon’tbecomefriendsinthepersonalsense, and the courts will still
haveworktodo.Butgoodwillwill
tendtoprevail.Suchasocietywillalsoknowsocial habits like respect,
and it’llenjoy collective celebrations, such aswhen‘we’winthecup.
This integrative view findssupport in other areas of research.A
striking one is neuroscience. IainMcGilchrist, in The Master and
hisEmissary,exploreshowthetwohemi-spheresofthebrainseetheworlddif-ferently,oneasifweareindependent,self-attending
creatures; the other asif we are dependent,
other-seekingcreatures.Hispointisnotthatoneisbetterthantheother,butthatbotharerequired,one
for theother–though,he warns, the independent,
self-attendinghemispherehas triumphedovertheotherinthemodernworld.
Ethics is a form of
practicalintelligence.Likefriendship,wenurturevirtues best by our
engagement withothersandtheworld.Suchskillsmustbe learntafresh
ineverygeneration–another reason why a fixed,
codifiedsystemneverinspires:itcontainslittleconceptionthat life
istobelived.Butthat alsomeans there’s hope, becauseethics can be
remade.Thatwill comeaboutbyrecognisingthenatureofourdependency and
independence. We’llsenseit’srightbecauseit’llspeaktoourhumanity,
thereby enlarging it. Whowould want to live without friends?Who
could? It’ll be good because itoffersustheresourcestoflourish.
MarkVernon,'Ethicswithalittlehelpfromfriends,'CitizenEthicsinaTimeofCrisis,Guardian,2010,pp.11–12.
MarkVernonisanauthorandjournalist.Hisarticlesandreviewsonreligious,philosophicalandethicalthemeshaveappearedinmanynewspapersandmagazines.
ethics with a little help FRom FRiends
—maRk VeRnon
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201016
haRmonykoRine
Trash Humpers—
June sees the theatrical release in the ICA cinema of Trash
Humpers, the new film by writer and director Harmony Korine. Over
the past fifteen years, Korine has achieved notoriety and critical
acclaim for his stirring screenplay for Larry Clark’s Kids (1995)
and subsequent ventures as writer and director of Gummo (1997),
Julien Donkey-Boy (1999) and Mister Lonely (2007). Despite his
reputation for youthful provocation, Korine’s work has never simply
been about going to extremes. His inter-est in people at the
margins of society, and a desire to compli-cate the relationship
between narrative and realism, have led him to produce work both
for the cinema and the gallery, as well as numerous fanzines and
books, displaying a boundless curiosity explored through a variety
of aesthetics, genres and characters. Comedy, violence, song,
dance, poetry, contemporary and folk art, bizarre physical acts and
a clear love of film are all bound up in a stylistic
experimentalism rarely seen in contem-porary cinema. Each of these
facets – seemingly contradictory yet in Korine’s world somehow
complementary – can be found in Trash Humpers, which takes the form
of degraded found video footage, capturing the bizarre behaviour of
a gang of suburban degener-ates (in reality, the filmmaker and
friends in disguise). In the back alleys, vacant lots and rundown
houses of suburban America, people are doing unspeakable things to
whatever they find lying around. The crudeness and banality of a
contemporary cultural life in which the most pointless and
ridiculous acts imaginable become a source of entertainment reaches
a new nadir.
18 – 30 June
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201018
There’s an MP3 audio file stored somewhereon the computer that
I’mwriting this on,
thatrecordsHarmonyKorine,sittingaloneinaroomforaboutfiveminutes.I’dagreedtointerviewhimforthereleaseofhisfilmMrLonelyin2007,butI’dfallenbehindscheduleandhadtoruntogetthereontime.IstartedtheinterviewoutofbreathandafteronlyafewminutesIwasdrippingwithsweat.Iexcusedmyselftotakeabathroombreaktofreshenup,butinadvertentlyleftthetaperun-ning:hence,theTrappistrecordingofKorine.Theplaybackwasn’texactlyrevelatory:firstthedirec-tor
laughsa little tohimself (presumablyatmyappearance, melting like a
candle in the
heat),then,fortheremainingfewminutes,there’sjustthenoiseofoutsidetraffic,themuffledconversa-tionsofthepublicistsintheadjoiningroom,low-levelbackgroundnoise.
Andyet I sometimeswonder if itwouldn’thave beenmore honest ofme to
have sentmyeditor this prolonged silence rather than
theresponsesIgotfromKorinewhenIreturned.He
canbeanentertaininginterviewee,butforhim,encounterswiththepressoftenseemasmuchanopportunityfortallstoriesandimprobableanec-dotesasforconsideredreflectiononthefilmhe’stheretopromote.Here’sarecentexample(takenat
random) ofKorine from this January,
havingjustarrivedattheRotterdamFilmFestival,talk-ingtothejournalistBenWaltersabouthisearliermemoriesoftheDutchcity:
Imet this girlwhen Iwaswalkingback
tothehotel.Shewaslikesixmonthspregnantanddrinkingbeerandstandingunderatree,andshehadpulledherskirtaboveherkneesandshewasstickingaforkinheranus.Iaskedwhatshewasdoingandshesaidherasswasveryitchy.
This thumbnail sketch is of a piece withthe scatological surrealism
of Trash Humpers.Youmightseeacertainsidewayshumourintheremark, or
youmight just think it plain
puer-ile,andtheseresponsesarelikelytobereliableindicators of your
experience of Trash Hump-ers. Inanyevent,Korine is
lessconcernedwith
make it, make it, don’t Fake it
—edwaRd lawRenson
-
tRash humpeRs / lawRenson 19
credibility than with finding opportunities
ininterviewsformini-performancepiecesandbio-graphical flights of
fancy.The
approachmakesforgoodcopy,butitalsodeflectsanyattempttogethimtotalkseriouslyabouthisownpractice.Ironically,thegrandstandingallowstheworktospeakforitself.Butwhenthepieceinquestionis
as slipperyand resistant to
categorisationasTrashHumpers,thebigquestionis:whatexactlyisbeingsaidinthisfilm?
Like Korine’s remarks in press interviews,Trash Humpers is on one
level a
provocation.Aseeminglyramblingcollectionofskitsinvolv-ingthreefigures,eachsportingrubberyold-cronemasks,
getting involved in varying degrees oftrouble
indesolatepatchesofdowntownMem-phis,thefilmispatience-stretchingandgleefullyobscurantist.Themovie
takes its title from thehabitthesethreeoldfolkhaveofscrewingitemsof
refuse, an image of involuntary, almost
ani-malisticpleasure-satingthatisatfirstdisturbing,then–onrepetition–funny,and,finally,unac-countablypoignant.
It isaspectacleofpunkishbravura, and this attitude reverberates
throughthefilm’sgrotesque,sometimesviolentvignettes:a young boy in
a school uniform smashes ababydoll (to the soundof giggling like
that ofthemidget at the end ofWerner Herzog’sEvenDwarves Started
Small); thebodyof abusker
isrevealedonthekitchenfloorofanemptyhouse,hishead
leakingstrawberry-redblood;anakedcorpseisbrieflyglimpsedinarefusedump.
Mixingoutlandish,unsettlingimagerywithasenseoftrailer-parkAmericana,thefilmeschewsthe
satisfactions and consolations of
conven-tionalnarrativecinema.Chasingpopularsuccessisnot,onesuspects,somethingthatgreatlypre-occupiesKorine,buttherewasatleastatentativestep
towards amore‘mainstream’ style
offilm-makingwithhislastfilmMrLonely.Itsdreamystrangenesswastetheredtoacoherentplot,nameactorsandpop-culturereferences;afterthemutedcritical
response to that film, Iwonder ifTrashHumpers isn’t an attempt by
Korine to reclaimthe abrasive experimental impulses and formal
challengesofearlierworklikeJulienDonkey-Boy(1999)andhisshortfilms.
Is that what we can take from the
film’sconcernwiththediscardedrubbishofeverydaylife?Thetrashhumpers’obsessionwithrubbishappearstohaveinfectedtherestoftheproduc-tion.All
thepropsseemhalf-inchedfromjunk-yards.A charity-shop chic governs
the costumedesign.And,most strikingofall, themoviehasbeen shot
ondegradedVHS tape,
itsmanyon-screenmomentsoffuzzyabstractionandsnowydropouttestifyingtothisobsolescenttechnology.It’snottoomuchofastretchtoseethis‘junkaes-thetic’asaresponseto,orevenrenunciationof,thepolishedproductionvaluesofMrLonely,and,morewidely,akindofpolemicagainsttheslickallureofsomuchofourvisualculture.
Inhisnewfilm,Korineinveststhecrapwe’dordinarilythrowawayordismissasuglyorunin-terestingwith
a seductive appeal – literally
so,inthecaseofhisthreeleadcharacters,forwhomthe sight of something
as ordinary as a plasticrecycling bin can be the greatest of
turn-ons.But there’s an aesthetic design here too:
every-dayobjects,thedetritusoftherun-downurbanmilieu,aretransformedbythewoozy,ghostlyVHSphotographyintostrangeandbeautifulthings.Inoneof
themanystrikingnight-timesequences,forinstance,anabstractsplodgeofcolourdancesintheflickeringtorchlightbeforerevealingitselfasafirehydrant.
This kind of perceptual game
identifiesTrashHumperslessasanexampleofindependentAmericancinema(evenatitswildestmargins)aswithinthetraditionofvideoart–aterm,inter-estinglyenough,thatislosingrelevancywiththeincreasingly
common convergence of
celluloidandHDdigitaltechnologies(atrendthattheana-logueTrashHumpersdefiantlybucks).Andbeyonditsallegiancetoacertainstrandofvideoart,onecouldbetemptedtoviewKorine’sinsistenceonfixingaestheticvaluetobanalbitsandpiecesofrefuseaspartofmuchgranderlineageofgalleryart.
In thefilm’s credit sequence,Korinedirectsthecameratoa
toiletcistern, freestanding, ina
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201020
patchofwasteland.AtributetoDuchamps,per-haps?Or,inthespiritoftheimprovisedsummershootthatKorinehasdescribedwhendiscussingthemakingofTrashHumpers,didhejuststumbleacross
this bathroom appliance,
incongruouslysituatedinwhatlookslikearun-downcitypark,andthink:‘Cool,let’sfilmit.’?
I’minclinedtothinkthelatter,andit’sthisspiritoffreewheeling,on-the-hoofinventivenessthat
makes Trash Humpers such bracing view-ing. Yes, the durational,
abstract,
non-narrativeaspectsofthefilmconnectittoastrandofavant-garde
practice, which Korine has always
know-inglyincorporatedintohiswork.But,alittlelikeKorineininterviews,TrashHumpersdefiesustotakeittooseriously.
Aboveall,there’ssomethingalmostchildlikein its attention-seeking
and
mischief-making.Earlyoninthefilmweseetheeponymouselderlytriosmashinguptheinteriorofaderelicthouse.ThescenerecallsasequenceinKorine’s1997filmGummo,whenayoungmandemolishesa
tablein a cramped kitchen. But if that scene
evokesasenseofinchoatefurythatresonateswiththefilm’sdepictionofthefrustrationsofsmall-townlife,thespectacleofdestructioninTrashHumpersis
sheer,headyanarchy: it presents
theuncom-plicatedpleasuresofakidsmashingupamodelthathe–or,betterstill,someoneelse–hascare-fullyconstructed.Thelinethatseparatesascenelike
this from the skater-dudemayhem of,
say,Jackass,ispresumablythere,butIcan’tseeit.
Thefilmdelightsinotherexamplesofunrulybehaviour,likethescenewhenthetrashhumperstossfluorescentlighttubeshighupintothenightairandletthemlandontheconcretewithasatis-fyingtinkle.Vandalismhasrarelybeensocreative.For
all the simulated sex of its lead characters,a certain innocence
lurks underTrashHumpers’bad-boy pose, an innocence shared by the
trioofleadcharacters.Inasequencethatmakesthemostofthegrubby‘Readers’Wives’camcorderaes-thetic,twoofthetrashhumpershirethreepros-titutesforthenight,butthebehaviouroftheseelderly
men is strangely pre- (or post-) sexual:
onegigglesuncontrollablywhiletheotherseemsmoreintriguedbytouchingthecall-girls’leatherfetishgearthanbythewomenthemselves.Else-where,Korineseemstobepayingtributetothegross-outdeliriumofJohnWaters’PinkFlamingosbygoadingtwoofhiscasttodigestsomeinediblematerial.ButratherthanthedogshitthatWaters’convincedDivinetoswallow,it’swashing-upliq-uidthatheservesuptohisactors,aconsiderablylessfilthyandlesstabooappetizer.
EarlierIcalledTrashHumpersaprovocation,butit’saprovocationinthesenseofatrick-or-treat,
like the razor in the applementioned atthe beginning of the
film.The results are ram-bling, flawed, sometimes boring; but
there’s agiddy,try-anythingcreativitytotheprojectthatfeels fresh
and intoxicating. “Make it, make
it,don’tfakeit”,isoneofthefewrepeatedrefrainsof the trash humpers,
and it might serve as acredo for the film itself: Trash Humpers
exudesa childlike, unsophisticated pleasure
inmakingthings,principallyinmakingtrouble.It’sbeenawhile
sinceKorinehasdone sowith
suchbrio,andwemightviewTrashHumpersashisattempttoreclaimtheenfantterriblelabelbestowedonhimatthestartofhiscareer.Forsome,thismightbe
a little unseemly and regressive: now in hislate
thirties,Korineshouldgrowup,surely?Butit’sanironythatKorineisperhapsawareof,andpossiblywhyhemadehisinfantiletrashhump-erssoaged.Besides,whosaysthatartshouldbegrown-upanddignified?Whateveryou
thinkofit,TrashHumperscomesacrossasthekindoffilmthatKorineneededtomaketorenewandrein-vigoratehispractice.“Ifeellikeayoungboy”,oneofthetrashhumperssays,hisfacehiddenbehindanagedmask;“Ifeellikeanewman.”
EdwardLawrensonisdeputy-editorofSight&Soundmagazine,andhasalsowrittenaboutfilmfortheBigIssue,andTimeOut.
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tRash humpeRs / lawRenson, koRine 21
ExcerptfromMarkGonzales&HarmonyKorine,Adulthood,AllegedPress,1995.
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201022
gang oFFouR
—On Wednesday 9 June, ICA members have the opportunity to
experience an evening dedicated to the English post-punk band Gang
of Four. The event celebrates the launch of the band’s new album
Content, its first full-length release of new material for over
fifteen years. For more than three decades, the band has championed
a more complex role for popular music – one that is both
con-ceptually articulate and capable of euphoric hedonism. Having
worked intermittently yet for concentrated periods since its
for-mation in 1977, Gang of Four has influenced numerous musical
genres and individual artists, and has left a very special legacy.
Along with other bands formed around this time and grouped under
the description ‘post-punk’, the Gang continues to inspire interest
in a type of music-making in the UK that fused popu-lism with
experimentalism and a polemical attitude. Since the band’s
inception, Gang mainstays Jon King and Andy Gill have remained
committed to a provocative brand of neo-Marxist informed lyricism,
fusing this with an array of musical influences to create what
journalist Paul Morley has described as “a kind of demented funk,
incredibly white but also, because of political commitment and
defiant sloganeering, very dark, and ultimately … close to the
depraved edge of the blues and Hendrix”. This politically engaged
creativity shows no sign of letting up: one newly written song
titled ‘Sleeper’ addresses “modern paranoia, and the new politics
of those that ‘belong’ and those that are ‘outsiders’”. Gang of
Four’s angular sounds cut through the illusion of emotion within
pop music, instead giving a glimpse of the impersonal structures
that organise our lives. Centering around a live performance from
the band, the ICA event also features a display of artifacts from
the group’s archives: photographic album artwork, film projections
and a recording of Gang of Four’s first ever gig, recently
re-discovered by singer Jon King.
9 June
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gang oF FouR / maRcus 23
EarlythisfallIwenttoheartheGangofFour,analmostunknownEnglishpunkgroupthathadbeenbookedintoSanFrancisco’sTempleBeautiful(sincere-named–IthinkIcanbringmyselftowritethis–NewWaveAGoGo)asanopeningact.Ittookmesomethingunderfiveminutestodecidethattheseleft-wingformeruniversitystudentsfromLeedswerethemostinterestingbandI’dseensincethesexpistols–andthemostexciting.
Thatconvictionhadlittletodowithanyexplicitmessage.TheGangofFourmayannounce“Weareallsocialists”ininterviews,orworkwithEngland’sRockAgainstSexism,butIcaughtonlyasnatchoflyricshereandthereinthehubbub.Itwasthepuredramaoftheirmusicandthewaytheyheldthestagethatmadethedifference.
Theyaresomethingtosee–grim,determined,abitintimidating,asiftheytrulymeantocarryontheworkofthepeopleafterwhomthey’venamedthem-selves.SingerJonKingisalldesperation:armswaving,herushesacrossthestageinzigzags,andifheseemslikeajokeatfirst,hisintensitycansoonhaveyouworried.BassistDaveAllenmightappearcolour-less,aniceguyalongfortheride;whenheheadsforthelipofthestagetoham-merdownachange,heturnsthreatening.DrummerHugoBurnham–shortandstocky,hishaircutdowntoaskinheadburr–couldbejustafewweeksoutof
reformschool,andit’sashockwhenhestepsoutfrombehindhiskittosing‘It’sHerFactory’,asongabouthousewives–becausehedoesn’tlookasifhecouldhandleacompletesentence.
ButitwasguitaristAndyGillwhomademeafraidtotakemyeyesoffthestage.Dressedblandlyinjeansandashirtbuttonedtotheneck,withpiercingeyesandastoicface,heisaperformerofunlikelybutabsolutecharisma:hissmall-estmovementsarechargedwithabsurdforce.Heholdshimselfasifhe’sseenitallandexpectsworse.Hecommunicatesaboveallaprofoundsenseofreadiness.He’safigureoutofcountlessBritishsci-fiflicks:caughtbetweenpowersthatareatonceimpossibletounderstandandunmistakablyevil,he’stheeverymanwhoclawshiswaytothefinalcredits.
OnthebackoftheGangofFour’sfirstsinglewasanewspapershotofamatadorandabull;printedalongsidewasaletterfromthegroupdetailingthecaptiontheywantedused.Itread:“Thematadorissaying,‘Youknow,we’rebothintheentertainmentbusiness,wehavetogivetheaudiencewhattheywant.Idon’tliketodothis,butIearndoubletheamountI’dgetifIwereina9-to-5job.’Thebullissaying,‘Ithinkthatatsomepointwehavetotakeresponsibilityforouractions.’”Entertainment!,GangofFour’sdebutalbum,extendsthedialogueandplayswiththeform;thelyricschangesidesfrommatadortobullwitheverytune,andthetonethroughoutisoneofominous,carefullyworkedoutdisorder.
Thesongsaregnomic,situationalrenderingsoftheparadoxesofleisureasoppression,identityasproduct,sexaspolitics;thethemehereisnotArmaged-don(as,withthesamematerial,itseemedtobeonstage),butfalseconsciousnesswithinconsumerculture.Theperformersdon’trailagainsttherepressionimplicitinadvertisingandmasssexualfantasies;rather,withoutahintofcondescension,theyactoutreceivedideasatjustthatpointwheretheybegintocomeapart.
Narrativeisabandoned,inthemusicnolessthaninthelyrics–thetunesareconstructedoutofjarringoff-beats,crookedframesfromGill’sguitar–andtheprocessisfullofgaps.“Fornicationmakesyouhappy”,Kingsingsin‘Natural’sNotinIt’.Heseemstoacceptthatasthewaythingsare.Tofollowthestorythebandistelling,though,youhavetowon-derwhysexhasturnedinto“fornication”,perhapsmakeaconnectiontolinesfrom‘Contract’–“Thesesocialdrams/Putintopracticeinthebedroom/Isthissopri-vate/Ourstruggleinthebedroom?”–andthenwonderwhyacouplesophisticatedenoughtodescribesexas“struggle”haveturnedsexinto“acontractinourmutualinterest”.
Onalmosteverycutthere’sthesensethattheabilitytospeakclearly,todefinechoices,isslippingaway.Thisisnowheresoevidentason‘ReturntheGift’and‘Anthrax’.Theformeristheonlytrackonthealbumwithconventionalrock’n’rollmomentum:asKingrecitesacutupofcommercialgive-awayslogans,BurnhamandAllenfindastartling,jerkingbeat,andGilltracesitwithtinysqueaks–squeaksthat,asthemusicbuilds,seemlikethepatheticcriesofaconsumerwhowillspendtherestofhislifewaitingbyhismailboxforhispackagetoarrive.‘Anthrax’,ontheotherhand,isanythingbutimpressionistic.It’stheband’sstarkestpiece,androotedinanaestheticworthyofthegroup’sname:contradiction.
gang oF FouR—
gReil maRcus
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201024
EmergingfromawashoffeedbackandechofromGill,BurnhamandAllenpunchoutafantastic,syncopatedrhythm.Kingcomeson,chanting,emotionallyfrozen–damninghimselfforhavingbeensoweakastofallinlove.
AndIfeellikeabeetleonitsbackAndthere’snowayformetogetupLove’
llgetyoulikeacaseofanthraxAndthat’sonethingIdon’twanttocatch
Asidefromsomemumblingandburiedinthemix,that’sallyouhearthefirsttimearound–andimageryaside,it’sfairlystandardstuffforpunk.Thatmumbling,however,turnsouttobeGill,deliveringasimultaneouscritiqueofKing’slyrics.Theeffectisdisorientingandhilarious:Gillspeaksinthedeadpanvoiceofastudentcalleduptoreadhisessayinfrontoftheclass.
Lovecropsupquitealotassome-thingtosingabout;mostgroupsmakemostoftheirsongsaboutfallinginloveorhowhappytheyaretobeinlove.Youoccasionallywonderwhythesegroupsdosingaboutitallthetime.It’sbecausethesegroupsthinkthere’ssomethingveryspecialaboutit–eitherthatorelseit’sbecauseeverybodyelsesingsaboutitandalwayshas.Youknow:toburstintosongyouhavetobeinspiredandnothinginspiresquitelikelove.[AtthispointGillactuallypausestoclearhisthroat.]Thesegroupsandsingersthinktheycanappealtoeveryonebecauseapparentlyeveryonehasorcanlove,orsotheywouldhaveyoubelieve,anyway–butthesegroupsgoalongwiththebeliefthatloveisdeepineveryone’spersonality.Idon’tthinkwe’resayingthere’sanythingwrongwithlove;wejustdon’tthinkthatwhatgoesonbetweentwopeopleshouldbeshroudedinmystery.
Gill,Burnham,KingandAllenareinheritorsofJohnnyRotten–theirmusichasthefeelingofbeginningjustwhereheleftoff–butperhapsmainlyasart-istswhoinhabitthespaceoffreedomheclearedwhenheprovedthatanythingwaspossible.Hesmashedthelimits;mostareinplace,butIdon’tthinkthere’sanylimittohowgoodGangofFourcanbecome.
–NewWest,3December1979
GreilMarcus,‘GangofFour’,IntheFascistBathroom:Punkinpopmusic,1977–1992,FirstHarvardUniversityPress,1999,pp.50–53.
do as i say—
gang oF FouR
Whetthebladeonthestone,Lightthefirefromtheflint
IconfesstoallofmycrimesTellmemoreandI’ llrepeatyourlines
You’renotnatural,you’renotasGodmadeyou,DoasIsay,DoasIdo
BeforeI’mburnedupintheflames,IwillgiveyoualltheDevil’snames
DoasIsay,DoasIdoDoasIsay,DoasIdoDoasIsay,DoasIdoDoasIsay,DoasIdo
Rodonyourbacki’lluse‘tilit’sbroken,
Yousayyou’reinnocentsoyoumustbeguilty
YouservemeillSir,there’snothingtofind,Needsomefacetime,needsomequalitytime
Iwillcleavethesoulfromtheflesh,Iamunmovedasyouconfess
Lookinthisglass,wearethesame,Ifwereversedthenyou’dbeintheflames
DoasIsay,DoasIdoDoasIsay,DoasIdoDoasIsay,DoasIdoSayasIsayandyouarenotyou
Please
SayasIsay
PleasePlease
SayasIsayPlease
DoasIsay
Who’satthestake?Dieforabreak,LoseallIstake,Killalltheday,Sheworesomelipstick,Sheshould’vecoveredit,Dressindayglorobes,InGuantanamo
NowIknowyou,I’ llfollowyou,NowIknowyou,I’
llfollowyou,NowIknowyou,I’ llfollowyou,NowIknowyou,I’
llfollowyou.
LyricsfromGangofFour,‘DoAsISay’,Content,PledgeMusic,2010.
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gang oF FouR / maRcus, gang oF FouR, conRad 25
heaRt oF daRkness—
joseph conRad
“I let him runon, this papier-mâchéMephistopheles, and it seemed
tomethatifItriedIcouldpokemyforefingerthroughhim,andwouldfindnothinginsidebutalittleloosedirt,maybe.He,don’tyousee,hadbeenplanningtobeassistant-managerby-and-byunderthepresentman,andIcouldseethatthecomingofthatKurtzhadupsetthembothnotalittle.Hetalkedprecipi-tately,andIdidnottrytostophim.Ihadmyshouldersagainstthewreckofmysteamer,hauledupontheslopelikeacarcassofsomebigriveranimal.Thesmellofmud,ofprimevalmud,byJove!wasinmynostrils,thehighstillnessofprimevalforestwasbeforemyeyes;therewereshinypatchesontheblackcreek.Themoonhadspreadovereverythingathinlayerofsilver–overtherankgrass,overthemud,uponthewallofmattedvegetationstandinghigherthanthewallofatemple,overthegreatriverIcouldseethroughasombregapglittering,glittering,as
itflowedbroadlybywithoutamurmur.All
thiswasgreat,expectant,mute,whilethemanjabberedabouthimself.Iwonderedwhether
the stillness on the face of the immensity looking at us
twoweremeantasanappealorasamenace.Whatwerewewhohadstrayedinhere?Couldwehandlethatdumbthing,orwouldithandleus?Ifelthowbig,howconfoundedlybig,wasthatthingthatcouldn’ttalk,andperhapswasdeafaswell.Whatwasinthere?Icouldseealittleivorycomingoutfromthere,andIhadheardMrKurtzwas
in there. Ihadheardenoughabout it
too–Godknows!Yetsomehowitdidn’tbringanyimagewithit–nomorethanifIhadbeentoldanangelorafiendwasinthere.IbelieveditinthesamewayoneofyoumightbelievethereareinhabitantsintheplanetMars.IknewonceaScotchsailmakerwhowascertain,deadsure,therewerepeopleinMars.Ifyouaskedhimforsomeideahowtheylookedandbehaved,hewouldgetshyandmuttersomethingabout‘walkingonall-fours’.
Ifyouasmuchassmiled,hewould–thoughamanofsixty–offertofightyou.IwouldnothavegonesofarastofightforKurtz,butIwentforhimnearenoughtoalie.YouknowIhate,detest,andcan’tbearalie,notbecauseIamstraighterthantherestofus,butsimplybecauseitappalsme.Thereisataintofdeath,aflavorofmortalityinlies–whichisexactlywhatIhateanddetestintheworld–whatIwanttoforget.Itmakesmemiserableandsick,likebitingsomethingrottenwoulddo.Temperament,Isuppose.Well,IwentnearenoughtoitbylettingtheyoungfooltherebelieveanythinghelikedtoimagineastomyinfluenceinEurope.Ibecameinaninstantasmuchofapretenceastherestofthebewitchedpil-grims.ThissimplybecauseIhadanotionitsomehowwouldbeofhelptothatKurtzwhomatthetimeIdidnotsee–youunderstand.Hewasjustawordforme.Ididnotseethemaninthenameanymorethanyoudo.Doyouseehim?Doyouseethestory?Doyouseeanything?ItseemstomeIamtryingtotellyouadream–makingavainattempt,becausenorelationofadreamcanconveythedream-sensation,thatcomminglingofabsurdity,surprise,andbewildermentinatremorofstrugglingrevolt,thatnotionofbeingcapturedbytheincrediblewhichisoftheveryessenceofdreams…”
Hewassilentforawhile.
“…No,itisimpossible;itisimpossibletoconveythelife-sensationofanygivenepochofone’sexistence–thatwhichmakesitstruth,itsmeaning–itssubtleandpenetratingessence.Itisimpossible.Welive,aswedream–alone…”
YouknowIknowthatIexploityoubutIdon'tdoitonpurpose
ExcerptfromJosephConrad,HeartofDarkness,ProjectGutenberg,2006,firstpublishedin1899inBlackwoodsMagazine.
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201026
liFt—
Throughout the ICA’s rich history, it has been a cradle for new
performance, and a platform for artists exploring
interdisciplin-ary work as a means to address the compelling issues
of our time. In June 2010 the ICA welcomes back LIFT – the London
International Festival of Theatre – as a crucial partner in its
endeavour to highlight new groups and individuals working with
performative presentation and intervention. Founded in 1981, LIFT
has played a significant role over the years in bring-ing important
international artists to London and initiating the production and
performance of new work. 2010 marks the full-scale return of the
festival as a London-wide event after a hiatus of nine years. For
four weeks from 23 June, LIFT events are taking place in some of
the capital’s most prestigious cultural venues, as well as on the
estates and neighbourhoods of East and North Lon-don. LIFT also
addresses the role of theatre and performance in the digital world,
embracing the potential of new technology for both artists and
audiences. Bringing together artists from around the world, the
festival provides a cultural gathering point and platform from
which to consider concerns both local and global, and from across
the artistic spectrum. As part of LIFT, the ICA hosts a four-week
programme fea-turing four international productions. These new
works bring together diverse groups of performers, artists and
writers, includ-ing the acclaimed Anglo-German artist collective
Gob Squad; Rimini Protokoll, leaders of the theatrical movement
known as ‘Reality Trend’; Russian playwright Ivan Vyrypaev; world
cham-pion B-Boy crew Top 9; and a group of eighteen teenagers from
Cork who have produced the visceral new work Fuck My Life in
collaboration with leading Belgian director Pol Heyvaert. Alongside
these productions, the ICA also becomes the home of the LIFT Club.
The beating heart of LIFT, this programme of informal talks,
workshops, archive material and late-night cab-aret enables artists
and audiences to come together, share ideas, play, drink and
participate in the festival. Hosting dialogues and discussions
about the paradigm-shifting issues of today such as climate change,
the impact of digital culture, and the rapidly changing nature of
public engagement and participation, the Club is a lively vehicle
for both entertainment and discourse.
24 June – 18 July
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liFt / etchells 27
OuttheresomewheretheshowstartsAndthoughsometimesithappensdifferentlymostlikelyit’samatterofdimmingthelightsinoneplaceandraisingthemupinanother.ashiftofemphasis–onepartoftheroomyouareinlosingfocussotheotherthenburnsbrightandpersonsenterthestage,speak,moveandtimepassesbut
itburnsbrightalsointheafterwardsforexampleaftermathofafireworkscratchedonaskyseenfromLondonandpersonscrossthestageofre-memoryorelsetheaudioechoeslongafterasoundforexampletheclangandclatterofmetalonmetal,hearddownbytheriver,ThamesinaBowGamelanboat(TheNavigators,LIFT’90)fromwhichsteamghostsarerisingalwaysupwardsorvoicessinginginabrokendownwaitingroomofformerEastGermany(MurxdenEuropäer!,producedbytheVolksbühne,directedbyChristophMarthaller,LIFT’95)theretheysingoldsongswrittenalreadydeepwithcontradictionsofthepresentpast–oldballads,
hymnsandYiddishsongsnexttoHitlertunes,andthenationalanthemofGDRtheysingFromtheruinsrisennewly,tothefutureturned,westand.Andyoucan’ttellquitewheretheydostand
TheircityandtheirtimebeingjustascomplexasyoursEverythingechoes,archivallyorotherwiseOr(anotherexample)sometightropewalkerspins,elegantanddeathly,highupaboveinthenowofthenstillburnedontheretina(CircusOz,LIFT’87)
TenminutesforLIFTLivingArchiveTenminutestoLIFTOffAndthenonwiththeshowMeagainhowitworksthearchiveAndLIFToffthenupanddownStoodhereLookingbackwards/forwardsLookingupanddownthere
FeetcrisscrossandthecityisCrosscrissingitsstreetswithfeetsAndcrisscrossingraisedstageswithlowspeechesandmurmuringsThemeaningonlylater,sometimesonlyyearslaterfallingintoplaceAnddowntherethecityfoldsaroundtheseeventscontinuesitsflowintimeitschaseofmoney,footsteps,andtherest,traffickingintraffic,andpedestrianspedestrianisingitspavementstowerblockingitstowerblocksundergroundingitundergroundsthevariousundergroundsandmainstreamsofitsheart,itsriverThames.strongwhatpeopleremember
delicateandstrongwhatpeoplerememberdelicateandstrongandstrangewhatpeoplerememberstrongwhattheyforget
thelookofeyesandtouchofhandssweatofbodiesonastageorinanauditoriumwithmanypersonswatchingwaitingacityneedsafestival,andtheechoesthatfollowandtheripplesthatspread
whoyousatwithandspokewithbeforeorwhisperedduringandafterwardswhatthewholethingbroughttomindwhatitchangedinyouandotherswhatitleftbehind
afaxconversationwithRamallaharrangingperformances–doyourememberfaxes?AcontactsheetbearingphotographsofRedPilot,NeueSlowenischeKunst–doyouremembercontactsheets?alistofpropsthatareneededbyguyscomingfromSouthAfrica.LettersbackandforthalsotypewrittenlettersanunbelievablenostalgiayouknowtheonesIthinkwherethelettersofcertain
wordshavebeentypedovertocorrectmistakesandwhereaccentsforthoseHungariannameshavebeenaddedin,usingpencilbackwhenwritingwasnotpixelswhenithadmateriality
AnarchivemakesthetracesvisibleTangibleEvenasitknowstheyaregoneNotjustbyanymeanstheartworksbutsomehowofallthosehoursofofficeworksandfinancesandeveninternsordiversedriversstoodattheairportwithsignsdeclaringthenamesofpeopletheyarewaitingforinconversationssomanytalkingbreakfastssomanyaftershowssomanytalksRememberRoyFaudreeinaLIFTtalk/conversationsayingTheactorisapersonthatsayslookLookLookatme(Likeme,now)youcanlookatmefromthetopofmyheadtothebottomofmyshoes.
andanarchiveatthesametimemakesclearthatThreeSisters(KatonaJózsefTheatre,Hungary,LIFT’89)needed2handbells
launch oFthe liFt liVing aRchiVe
—tim etchells
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Roland / issue 6 / june—august 201028
1statue9rugs2mirrors1globe2whirlygigs1medicalbag1clock1artificialcake3suitcases1basketofartificialflowersandadinnersetfor13persons
orthatTheDragonsTrilogy(RobertLePage/ThéâtreRepèreLIFT’87)
beneaththetitleProductionExpensesneededthingsbothgeneralandsuperspecificFromFitUp,GetOutandLightingtonameditemsSand,CurbStonesandTelegraphPole.Thereisapoetryinthesepracticalities.
Whilstelsewherethere,inanothertypewriteddocumentatthebottomsomewhereatthebottomofthelonglonglistoftechandlightingneeds(
forthewayofhowGeorgeCoates,LIFT’85)
it’sashametomissthedetailoftherequest–itemisedas‘AMiscellaneousNEED’–for100CubicFeetofHeliumperweek.Imeanthisisprobablyandbynomeansthestrangestrequestinthearchive,thoughhardtocompareobjectivelysinceasyetthereisnotrailorindextothecontentbythequalityorappearanceofstrangeness.GiventimeI’msuretherewillbe,thoughtheremaybetoomuchofit(strangeness)theretokeeptrackof,strangenessburiedbutemergingfromthedocuments,atraceyoucannotstopfromrising.
UpAbovethestreetsTolookdownonthewaywewalkedandtalkedthenTherouteswewalkedtogetheretothisplace“YourLondonisnotmyLondon.”That’swhatthewomansaid,asyouwalkedacrowdedpavementinEastLondoninYou–TheCity,byFionaTempleton(LIFT’90)
Audiencepassedfromperformertoperformer,onaninety-minutejourneybarragedwithtext,caughtupinastructurethatonlyslowlyletsyouintoitsgame,encounteringperformerswhoseemtobetaxidrivers,shoppersanddownandouts,performerswhoseemlikespies,likeloversandlikepsychopaths.
Andallofthemtalkingdirectlytoyou.
Whatyoufindinthisworkmostofall,asinmanyotherperformances,areflashesofconnection,whereaweirdsynchronicityjumpsbetweentext,contextandyourownstateofmind.
“Youswearyouhaven’thadanaffair…”saystheblackguyonthestepsofthechurchwhileyoulookoutatthetrafficandthedustswirlingonCommercialStreet.“Sheshouldleavehimandlivewithyou.Yousmile[hesays]yousmilesoyouknowwhatyourfaceisdoing.”
Pureelectric.
Elsewhereinthesameperformanceawhitewomansitsonthebenchnexttoyou.Somemovie-moment,onlyyou’reinit.You’relovers.Orwere.Shehastogo.Oryouhaveto.Ormaybeyoubothdo.Oroneofyouleftalreadyandonlynowcomesback.It’shardtotell,itallhappenedsodownthereandbackthen.Anyhow.Somehowinthemomentsyouspendtogether–sattogetheronthebench–thedistancethatisoftencalledtheatrecollapsesandyoucan’tseetheedgesoftheframe.Youwanttotellhernottoworry,it’sOK,it’sOK,butyoudon’tevenknowwhat‘it’isandwhen
hereyesseemtoneedcontactyougiveittothem,notquiteas‘aperformernolongerinthetheatre’butratherasaperson,simplypresent.
Shesays:“MyLondonisn’tyourLondon.Mywordscanbetranslatedintoyours,butthey’renotyours.Youfearandyetlongtocrossthatline.”
Readinglettersagain.backandforthforthehumanscaleof“hopeyouarewell”sand“nicetoseeyou”sand“pleaseletusknowifyouplantobeinLondon’sagain”andatthesametime,runningsidebysidetoallthattheinhumanscaleofvisas,carnets,logisticshealthandsafetyfireofficerchecksoneverythingarethereanynakedflames?noarethereanyflamesinsomewaynaked?noarethereanyflamesatall?wellyesbutmaybenotthekindyou’rethinkingofthenakedflamesofanideacanstartafireinacitylikethisonethat’sthetruetruthreality-nessofitallthatthingsspreadoutfromaneventthatstartsat8andbynine,nineteenortwentyyearslatertheripplesstillspread.StorywhispersSetlooseinthecity
andthatcity–London–yesgoesondownthereglowsondowntherewalkingitswalkwaysflyingoveritsflyoverscommunitycentringitscommunitiesthathavenocentrereallybutyouknowwhatImeangoesongardeningitsgardensandkitcheningitskitchens
akitchenshowhereagardenshowthereanairshowhereanearthfireandwatershowtheredowntheriveryesdownbytheriverandaskyshowhere
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liFt / etchells 29
ahightechorblueskythinkingshowthereadarkskywiththundercloudsshowthereinGraemeMiller’sTheDesirePaths(LIFT’93)andthecitydowntherecontinuestogrumbleandcrumbleweavingitscitizensinitsstre