Performance, Art and Ethnography Sarah Butler

8/12/2019 Performance, Art and Ethnography Sarah Butler

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Performance, Art and Ethnography

Sarah Butler

Abstract: The history of performance art can be compared with the social sciences pursuit of

cultural critique and commentary. Methods and theoretical frameworks are borrowed from

anthropological field research throughout this analysis of Montreal artist Olivia BOU!"#U$s %&&'

performance Salle C. "(ploring performance art through ethnography provides refle(ive) conte(t*

dependent renderings of time*sensitive work+acknowledging both artists$ and visitors$ per*

spectives. This is an interpretation of performance ,not limited to traditional formal and material

culture analyses- that seeks to demonstrate an ethnographic rendering of performance) and perfor*

mative appreciation of audience and artist.

Table of Contents

.Salle C

%."thnography

/.0erformance and 0ractice

1.2ituating !eactions

3.4eading !eactions

5.6onclusion

#cknowledgments

!eferences

#uthor

6itation

1. Salle C

Before entering Salle C of the 4eonard and Bina "llen #rt 7allery) 8 found mypath obstructed by a floor*to*ceiling pro9ection of someone$s 9ean*clad seat. romwall*to*wall) the blue*9eaned bottom appeared alternately as a still and a slightlymoving image; 8 noted the sitter$s goose bumps) but wasn$t sure if 8 was free to

go behind the screen or not. er posture ad9usted as 8 entered the room. #s she crossed her legs and leanedher head on her fist) she appeared to me at first as !odin$s Thinker.


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FQSG,%-) #rt. /1) 2arah Butler: 0erformance) #rt and "thnography

between us. The vacuum opened by this @iEard of OE*like anticlima( occurred asan e(pansive doubt) the scenario itself so counter to e(pectation. 8 found nofamiliar signs to guide my ne(t steps. 2he avoided my approach) shifting hergaEe from the pro9ection and away from me. 4acking invitation or instruction fromthis person in the center of the room ,who) it turns out was the artist: OliviaBOU!"#U-) 8 hesitated to break the loop connecting her) her image and thecamera. ow long would it take to deduce that) as theartist) she was the situation$s authorH On the far wall in a finished wood case withsliding glass doors) 8 found an e(pansive series of mini*F cassettes. The firsthad been dated and marked hourly) with lapses overnights and on 2undays. >erewas the artist) determined to remain under her own and others$ surveillance fromMay 3 to Iune G) the duration of the e(hibition.

igure : Olivia BOU!"#U) Salle C) video still) %&&') courtesy of the artist elloH #re you OliviaHJ ?othing. #nothergentle prod: J2alutH 6$est toi l$artisteHJ #gain. ?othing.


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alone) faced with your own every movement magnified on screen) with only thehourly e(change of video cassettes to break the continuity of nowH 8 wanted toknow other visitors$ responses. @as everyone as careful and mystified asmyselfH @hat were the others thinking when they stepped so defiantly near toBOU!"#U) when they called out at her) and when they overlooked herH 8wanted to know the internal revelations brought through the process. @asBOU!"#U reciting a list of things to doH Thinking of her mundane obligations:the groceries) phone*calls ... or e(periencing herself as an artwork: thinking ofne(t pro9ects) some earlier visitors$ remarks and behaviorH 8 assumed she mustgo through alternating periods of intense inspiration) epiphany) an(iousness) andlonging. @as there an overall pattern to these thoughts) feelings and sensationsvariable over the e(tended durationH >ow is it to consider being itself as a workof artH ere) video docu*mentation of 2alle 6 reflects the shiver*inducing conte(ts of the gallery tounderline visitor reactions to scenarios devoid of normative relational roles.

igure %: Olivia BOU!"#U) Salle C) installation view) %&&') courtesy of the artist


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sound and voice) from te(t to performance) from authority to vulnerabilityJ ,GG)p.G-.


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Through addressing the arts from a visitor*level we further understand structuresof the global art industry as one part of a broader social milieu. "(hibitions are nolonger didactic e(pressions) but generative models) wherein the best e(amplesprovide multiple access*points to dialogues between structures ,even whenovertly artist*authored or hypothetical- and agents ,whether or not characteriEedby roles and assumptions manifest by previous knowledge of the arts-."thnographic interpretations need not re9ect the artists$ intents in e(change foraudience reception+the point of contention between the two can be so insightful.This) again) is why it is important to protect cultural institutions from commercial*or market*driven programming) and to be wary of privileging one form of creativityover others.


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consistently ,perhaps by definition- resisted definition. !ose4ee 7O4B"!7)historian and director of ?ew Pork$s 0"!O!M# festival notes: Jperformance arthas been a medium that challenges and violates borders between disciplines andgenders) between public and private) and between everyday life and art) and thatfollows no rulesJ ,7O4B"!7) GG) p.%&-. #s pioneer contemporary perfor*mance artist #drian 080"! e(plains: J8t seems that abandoning discreet forms is)for me) the only way of preserving the idea within the reality of art*making activityJ,G'&) p.1-. ollowing trends echoed in other post*industrial disciplines we mightread these statements as evidence of the increasing mediation between individ*uals+both a critique of the rigid scriptedness of the everyday) and a gratefulabsorption of thing*determined sub9ectivities+harnessing the capacities of ourdesigned environments to construct our very humanness ,84?OT) %&&3-.


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?ear the end of the e(hibition a visitor sat quite near to BOU!"#U for 13minutes) making hand*signals and placing ob9ects) like a keychain) before thecamera.


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rom the ensuing conversations 8 interpreted visitors$ shock at BOU!"#U$spresence as though indicating a conceptual leap from abstract notions ofduration) to more tangible appreciation for the actuality of time. 8n realiEing thee(panse encapsulated by Salle C) many echoed my own initial process) calculatingall they needed to accomplish in the ensuing hours) sometimes recounting theirtask lists. >owever) this shock may also reflect some embarrassment at offeringso direct and straightforward a commentary of the piece within hearing range ofthe artist. This hesitancy to speak about BOU!"#U reflects her heightenedstatus as the artist) and shows a resistance to speaking frankly about someonewho is within hearing.


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presqu$en criant) de parler) voulant briser mon silence. Un 9eune homme s$est assis

par terre et m$a parlR pendant plus de vingt minutes de son e(perience) me posant

des questions sur la piLce) cherchant S savoir qui 9$Rtais) me confiant son dRsir de

me brusquer) de me faire rRagir. Un professeur et deu( de ses Rtudiants ont menR)

longuement) une discussion sur leur vision de la piLce et sur les questions qu$elle

soulevaient. "n rRalitR) 9e recevais quotidiennement la parole du spectateur. "t cette

parole) elle est audible dans la sequence qui rRsulte de la performance et insLre S

meme le corps de l$uvre) l$Rtat de sa reception) un propos) voire un discours) sur sa

nature. #insi) Salle CgRnLre un propos sur Salle C) et le rRcupLre pour produire

Salle CJ ,%&&') p.1-. "4#? describesas the real Jread through representation) and representation ... read through therealJ ,0>"4#?) GG%) p.%-. 2hock and emotion inspired by Salle Cand emergentin visitors$ reluctance to connect image and author reveal how she could becomereified as an inde( of presence) rather than actual presence. The monumentalscale of the filmed representation and its striking familiarity were perceived asprofound indications of the real. 8n turn) her actual presence was critiqued forbeing unresponsive) or it was mistaken for an inanimate sculpturalrepresentation. JBy e(posing "4#?) GG%) pp.*%-.


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&. Concl"sion

0erformance art draws us) by definition) to those evanescent and inaccessiblerealms: the psychic) the sub9ective) pro(imal) emotional) and intuited. >umaninteraction) although occupying a range of tone+in some cases overt and dra*matic) while in others subtle and removed+is always potentially revelatory. !8#U4T) for unflinching dedication to contemporary art in Montreal;and 0arsons 0rofessor 6live 84?OT for inspiring discussions. Thanks also to?ew 2chool 6ontemporary #rt 6ollection curators 2ivlia !O668O4O and "ric2T#!N) and 6ooper*>ewitt) ?ational esign Museum professor "than !OB"P)for important resources and recommendations.

A %&& C2 http:DDwww.qualitative*research.netDfqsD


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#eferences

Boudreau) Olivia ,%&&'-. #apport de sta!e( Compte #endu de la performance Salle C. Montreal

,unpublished-.6onquergood) wight ,GG-. !ethinking ethnography: Towards a critical cultural politics.Communication /ono!raphs)34) 'G*G1.

6onquergood) wight ,GG3-. Of caravans and carnivals: 0erformance studies in motion. T5#)67,1-) /'*1.

e6erteau) Michel ,G1-. The practice of everyday life. Berkeley: University of 6alifornia 0ress.

ilnot) 6live ,%&&3-. J"thicsH esignHJ 8n 2tanley Tigerman ,"d.-) The 8rche+orks Papers) Fol. )?umber %) ,pp.3*3/-. 6hicago: #rcheworks.

7oldberg) !ose4ee ,GG-. Performance( Live art since the 9:s. ?ew Pork: Thames >udson.

7oodall) ,Bud- >. 4loyd) Ir. ,%&&&-. The future of new ethnographic writing. 8n >. 4loyd ,Bud-7oodall) ;ritin! the *e+ Ethno!raphy,pp.'3*%-. 4ondon: #ltaMira 0ress.

Migone) 6hristof ,%&&'-. Start)http:DDellengallery.concordia.caD%&&5DenDe(positionsQstart.php

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Performance, Art and Ethnography Sarah Butler