Caitlin
Albritton
Closed
for Cleaning
We
were challenged to perform a drawing without using traditional media in our
execution. Though I deeply admire performance art created by others, I am loath
to present it myself. As it was, I was inspired by some mirrors I had used in
another project. Mirrors are such a charged object, tying into vanity,
mortality, beauty, self-esteem, reflection, perception, and more. I was
particularly interested in its role within vanity. I wanted to contradict the
mirrors traditional role in narcissism and pride by using it as a canvas in
which to display my bodily imperfections. To be specific, the oil that builds
on my face. Here is my score.
The
performance will take place in a women’s bathroom.
Upon
entering, the artist will put up a sign that reads, “closed for cleaning”
The
artist will begin with a clean mirror that she can hold.
She
will press her face into the mirror and smear all sides of her face across the
surface.
Remove
face from mirror and regard the marks left by the oils momentarily.
Spray
the mirror with youthful, floral perfume as if it were window cleaner.
Wipe
away grease with a washcloth, applying more perfume as needed.
Once
the mirror is cleaned, leave the bathroom, and remove the sign.
C.
Albritton
(2015)
I
chose to perform this in the women’s bathroom for two reasons: a bathroom is a
private space in which women often ready themselves to be seen in the public
eye, and because men are restricted. Though men may occasionally feel the
pressures to look and smell and behave a certain way, I don’t believe it comes
close to the expectations placed on women. Men are welcome to view the piece,
but they must first enter the women’s private space. I chose a bathroom for its
intimacy. It is in a private place where a woman will hide her imperfections to
prepare herself to be seen by those who expect her to seem perfect. It is where
she shaves her legs, plucks her eyebrows, drains her blemishes, powders her
nose, brushes her hair, paints her face, pinches her cheeks, hides her scars. I
want the audience to feel voyeuristic, as if they’re intruding. They are
watching as I present my unbecoming oil secretions, and they are watching as I
cover it up.
The
oil smears are a representation of a natural body function that is seen as
indecent, and thus shameful. A mirror is the only way I, or anyone, is able to
see themselves, and so soiling it with my oils taints the only representation I
have of myself. I use fake, astringent chemicals to wipe away the oils, leaving
the mirror clean and pungent of flowers and sweetness, the essence of girlishness.
It also wipes away the essence of
me. The pure and natural me. It denies my identity and my simple being, leaving
a cold, hard, blank surface in which to reflect to the world. I find fault in
society’s rejection of a woman’s natural being, and use this piece satirically to
communicate this.
References:
Pipilotti Rist
Marina Abromović
Yoko Ono
Jessica Ledwich
Anna Mandeitta
No comments:
Post a Comment