Foucault was wrong to say that sex was the truth of modernity. It is feeling and affect. - Lauren Berlant
Drew Denny is known around town for her work with Big Whup and Lola Loshkey, and also for her journalism for LA Record. The past year, however, has found Drew traveling through Europe and the Americas with the Reclamation Project and alone.
This Saturday, June 18, Drew curates the closing event of Sancho Gallery’s Tears and Ecstacy series. You can RSVP on Facebook. Her multimedia performance is a narrative that begins in Iceland, travels through a cancer ward at the time of her father’s death, and includes the first live set played by Big Whup since December.
I asked Drew to share some inspirations, and she showed me some Youtube videos. Click the link to see videos of Kate Bush, Julia Holter, Christian Falsnaes, and Marina Abramovic…
Kate Bush “Deal With God”
Taking care of someone as they die is an intimate experience. You see the person be more vulnerable than ever; they depend on you more than they’ve depended upon anyone since infancy. But this perceived closeness is, of course, a mirage– blurring the separation between two people like heat confuses a desert horizon. The caretaker never knows what the patient is feeling. Sympathy is performed. The patient cannot understand the impact of this experience upon the caretaker. Stoicism and gratitude are performed.
Of course, this song is not about death; it’s about heterosexual romance! Kate Bush thought it would be interesting if a man and a woman could make a deal with god and swap places so they could better understand one another. I appreciate her intention but think the song is also quite compelling when mis-interpreted according to the patient/caretaker relationship.
Marina Abramovic: Balkan Erotic Epic
While I am moved by and definitely have been inspired by Abramovic’s painful durational works such as Breathing in/Breathing out and Rhythm 0, Balkan Erotic Epic is one of my favorites because it displays perhaps her most whimsical use of the human body. In this film, Abramovic represents Balkan folk wisdom (men masturbating into the earth to ensure a fruitful harvest, women flashing their vaginas at the sky to stop the rain) through animation and live reenactments to explore the erotic acts by which humans have attempted to control their environment.
Marina’s deadpan narration is hilarious, and the reenactments are stunning! Shot on Super 16, these scenes feature an excellent cast of genitalia and are scored with heart-wrenching Balkan folk songs. The animation is a bit too precious for my taste but then again it does depict women putting fish in their vaginas and men fucking bridges.
Christian Falsnaes: The Whole Picture
Christian Falsnaes is a refreshing presence in the performance art world because he is playful. He uses his identity as a heterosexual white male that grew up making graffiti and playing electric guitar in a way that is both interesting and amusing—quite a rare feat! He employs spray paint and pop music as well as installation and performance within a context saturated by artistic, historical, and philosophical references.
This video depicts a performance I had the great pleasure of participating in during the ACTS festival for performance art in Roskilde, Denmark last month.
JULIA HOLTER//Ritual Music from Leaving Records on Vimeo.
Julia Holter with Jesselisa Moretti & whales, live performance and projection for dublab’s “Shimmer” at Reclamation’s AQUARIUM
I’m so proud to be a part of such a dynamic artistic and musical community. Julia is only one of the many people I could mention from the local scene (Janet Kim! Emily Lacy!). She’s performing on Saturday!
This video is documentation from a series I curated called RITUAL/MUSIC during Reclamation’s exhibition of AQUARIUM last year. Julia performed her songs in collaboration with some singing whales and colorfully captivating projection by Jesselisa Moretti.
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