"Lecture"

by Helge Meyer, held in Glasgow, February 2009

"It involved injury because it was an iron step ladder with spikes, which I climbed with my bare hands and feet. I was injured immediately and in a way which was radically mediatised in relation to the other bodies [...]. L´escalade non anaesthesia referred to politics and the Vietnam War."

Anne Tronche interprets Pane's dealing with the wound as the wish, to question the materiality of the body by the means of deliberately wounding it. Via these injuries, the artists seem to open up her body donation-like to the audience and to offer it as a means of solidarity and sharing.

The artist is prepared to hurt her body in a painful way in front of the audience to achieve a quality of communications that transcends far out over any representation of ideas. Pane obviously understands it as here duty, to go in her work way beyond any simple depiction. I perceive and interpret this work as a fundamentally humane and social responsibility that Pane is inclined to embody in an extreme manner.

"Injury is a sign of the extremely fragile state of the body, a sign of pain, a sign that brings out the exterior situation of aggression, of violence to which we are incessantly exposed. Therefore the moment of injury, I would say, is a radical moment; the moment which is the most charged with tension and distances least one body from another [...]"

She is using all injuries as signs, to pinpoint and to refer to the violence that individuals are exposed to. In the quote above, it is once more clearly and obvious to understand, that Pane is ready to get in charges for a delegator position of the (collective) "we".

The artist from Vienna, Valie Export found her own form at the end of the 60ies, to formulate socio-critical concerns with her own body as the means of expression. Central issue of Valie Exports’ performances was all the body as the interface of private and public images of identity. In an ever transforming and changing media-scape - the imputation of the body changes along: no longer body, but sign in the first place. The body within the framework of the new media does no longer present any identity, but stood for something else. Referring to the female body structures of enforced powers was represented insofar, as to cement the social and gender specific hierarchies. As described by Laura Mulvey, the representational functions were inscribed and enforced in and onto the female body. Valie Export for example achieved to personification this affiliation with her work "Body Sign Action".

"The artists of the feministic actionist have transported the "ecriture corporelle" far beyond the canvas, they inscribed it onto their own bodies, have up fronted their own individuality against their surrounding (oppressive) culture [...] That way the fear of damaging the female integrity by means of the verbal male language is expended to an analyses of damage as well in the body language of women, more then visible on countless tableaux, painted by men.

Her work was always meant to be irritations of the common view. The body as carrier for interpersonal communication served Export therefore always at the same time as stage and arena.

In some of her performances, for example in "Hyperbulie" (1973), she went as far as inflicting incredibly strong pain onto her body, to clarify its inscriptions.

„A corridor of wires, set under electricity. The human being enters and moves through that corridor, whereas constantly encountering the electrified wire and thus slowly sinks down to the floor."

Hyperbulie defines the "pathologic" need for activity to be found in various so called categories of mental diseases. At the end of the performance, that was realized with modest means and materials, to specially depict the social pressure on the (female) body, Valie Export, tired out from all electric seizures, collapses, to just once more press here face a last time against the electrified metal.

Another usage of pain or "endurance" means "longtime-performances", is the goal to attain any "peak-experience" "to arrive in the land of all ecstatic being out-of-yourself", The loss of identity in this emotional no man's land, counters the feeling of alienation, where the individual is facing a totalitarian society, completely normed and norm-controlled or find itself within an ever-growing virtual one.

It is much more thematizeing and performing the "being completely with yourself“, where the borderline experience of this individual feeling is happening on a sheer physical level, and therefore, the body again can be perceived as the first and last basis of evidence of all experiences. Via fear-, risqué- or pain situations - emotions of that kind are escalated. Marina Abramovic is using this concept in various works, for example in "Freeing the Body" - a piece, where the artist is dancing for 8 hours to the drumming of a musician.

Due to the extreme duration, not only a painful actionism is made visible, but something originates, that could be described and referred to as the physicality of time.

Dan McKereghan is showing in his work "Some truth" (performed on the 2nd and 3rd of April 2004 in Boston, USA, duration 28 hours) a similar consequence in front of a political background. Here as well, the body as a "time-sculpture" but in spite transponding in relative motionlessness an image full of associations. The festival "Corporeal Heat", where the American was showing his work, was taking place in an unheated, former police station in Boston inner-city. At this time, the temperatures were about 0-3°C. Dan McKereghan chose an empty prison cell for his work. Dressed in an orange whole body-suit, the artist sat with glued eyes during the whole festival more or less motionless at his chosen location of performance. The artist had a plate with a piece of meat positioned outside his cell, which was nothing but unreachable for him.

The image: McKereghans reminds in an intensive manner to the still ever-present images of the prisoners in Guantanamo Bay. During a talk with the artist, the performer was referring to the shame that he feels, facing the inhumane behavior of his country mates concerning the political prisoners encaged in this military basis. McKereghan stayed for the whole duration of the festival, in his cell. When the audience entered the location on the first day, the performer was already imprisoned and was only released and freed, when the festival was already officially ended. During this night, the performer was alone in the vacant complex of buildings and continued his performance. For McKereghan, this aspect of fragility and vulnerability, that he exposes himself to, is a main component of his performative oeuvre and in all sense of its meaning, body of work.

A way more direct acquaintance with the thought of being and to experience the feeling of total surrendered can be found in the work of the Yoyo Yogasmana from Indonesia. In his performance series "Crisis" (a.o. performed in Taiwan 2002 and in Jakarta 2002). The performer has him bound and tied into a complicated network of strings. They are knotted allover the whole body of the artist, so that he is located in a situation of total dependency and surrender to the audience. The participating members of the audience are now able, to control any of the artist's ability to move by towing or loosening the strings. It is nearly impossible due to that means of sheer applied force, administrated onto the artist, to avoid causing him serious and painful bruises or to even nearly throttle him.

Depending on the intensity of actions of the participating audiences during the performances, the injuries of the artist occur. The performer exposes himself here to an out power, namely the disposition of violence by the spectator that cannot escape their role as participants here at all. By this mean, Yogasmana is able to enforce a responsibility onto his audience that is not exhausting itself in passivity, but is to be handled actively. That way the Indonesian artist is creating a highly complex mirror of an image of a society, in which all interdependencies with all their "painful" consequences are assimilated into an esthetically forceful depiction. Interesting is here. That Yogasmana is creating the critical situation, under which he will be suffering. By using this tactics, he is aiming for a pedagogic effect concerning his audience, not to die from the consequences of his performance. The danger of getting strangulated by the audience is ever-present. Therefore the performer has to be over clear about the configuration and syncrisis of the participants, to keep the risk to a minimum. For Yogasmana the choice of his title mirrors, by using the term of "crisis", the whole situation in the postmodern society, while especially referring to the social life circumstances in Indonesia.

"I have one big title in my performance, Crisis. It is a representation about my life, my family life, my neighbors’’ life, my city’s life, also my country’s life. I can say, now we are in Crisis, crisis is an emergency. We have social crisis, economical crisis, and political crisis. That is all like a circle. […] It looks like they are bound to each other, they are tide to each other and I think if we don’t have to find how to solve this problem we will die. It’s about my country. […] Now, my performances are to be trial performances, to find out how deep the human heart is. The result from my performance is to be an experience for me and everybody."

I am convinced that the participation in any performance of Yogasmanas has an immense impact on every attendee, as its actions are directly related to each opponent without any means of abstraction. The devolution of the intellectual message that Yogasmana formulates in his statements maybe not be consciously perceived by every participant, but according to him, the emotional sharing of compassion is always granted. This can lead in some cases, the artist admits, to sadistic actions. This risk is basically always present in his work, as he completely surrenders himself to the control of the audience.

In his work "Traversee"(Transverse) from the year 2004, Yann Marussich is converging the image of death in a similar way. As soon as the audience enters the room, where the performance takes place, they see the artist located naked on a construction of tables that is approximately 14 meters long.

The construction is covered with a green carpet, on which the artist lies. Around his neck, a metal sling, that is connected to a machine at the headboard of the table with a long metal string. This string can be shortened via a various number of gear wheels, activated per hand, with the consequence of the artist's motionless body being drawn closer to the end of the table. Marussich indicates a timeframe between 2 and 6 hours, depending on the audience's involvement. Only, when the motionless body is drawn allover to the end of the 14 meters long table construction, the end of the performance is reached. In ""Traverses" two aspects are of special interest: on one hand it has to be understood as an undoubtly metaphor for torture, as Marussich confirms in an interview with the author. The image: of the throttled performer seems again to embody a delegate attitude for all those that do not have the privilege of having any public voice. Associations to the torture incidents in Abu Ghraib are as present as the memories of the bodies of killed soldiers that were carried through the streets of Mogadishu or Falludscha. Especially with that associative image in the background, the immense impact of this performance is more then made visible. The artist completely surrenders to its audience. No hint can be found, how any spectator is supposed to react. They enter the room and perceive the picture. Only by their (inter-) actions, they are able to fill this still life with any actual activity. In a statement, that the artist allocated, its getting clear, that the spectators of the work are to be defined as the actual "picture producers" and therefore the responsible co-activists:

"From the moment on, that the spectator enters the room, he becomes active. […] No role is suggested or enforced on him, apart from the responsibility for his own person, his attitudes and his own activities and even for his passivism. The spectator has all liberty on all optional levels. There is no hint for a sequence of events, to be followed. There is no censorship. There are only options."

Therefore, the work is showing similarities to the work of Abramovics "Rhythm 0“ that gives the audience the opportunity to apply various objects onto the artist. Abramovic is taking all responsibility, as Yogasmana, for the sequence of events and the event itself, and trusts the humanity of her audience. Here as well, the artist was corned and entangled in deep affliction, as spectators among other things, caused her injuries by knives and even put a loaded gun into her hand, to then direct it towards here head.

Works like "Traverses", the "Crisis-Performances" by Yoyo Yogasmana and the work of Abramovics are able, not only to communicate the pain, but to make clear statements about the consistence of the participating audience. Therefore they comprise a clear social and political annotation.

Especially in this performances dealing with the issue of self inflicted injuries, the question is arises, how the spectator is supposed to react to this new performative situation, he or she finds himself in suddenly. All relevant norms, that were valid before and all options for potentional behavior loose immediately any availability. Erika Fischer-Lichte is opposing in her book "Esthetic of the Performative" the behavior of the spectator in a theater to that in common life and draws the logical conclusion, that apparently the same actions (the murder of Desdemona on stage or the atrocity in public) lead to completely opposite reaction in the spectator. On one hand, the theatrical action is perceived as such and in spite of it potential of violence not perceived as any impulse for any action at all. But in the field of Performance Art, the observation of actual injuries does lead to a variety of completely different reactions by the audience.

By the means of the performance "Lips of Thomas", where Marina Abramovic is exposing herself to various self-flagellations, Fischer-Lichte is drawing the conclusion, that this kind of performances is transferring the spectator into a zone "between art and common daily life, between esthetic and ethic postulates. In any all day situation, the ethic axiom of interference would be the basis to inhibit any form of violence against oneself or others. But for example in any performative situation on any theater stage, it is granted, that all forms of violence are not "real" - but being the delineation of a play-acted form of sway. The consequences of this stage activism go far into the daily life. Fischer-Lichte claims now, that the attending of any performance by Marina Abramovic is leading to a transformation of the spectator, drawing real consequences for the show and the therefore participating audience. The spectators are transformed from their status of being simply recipients into an actively acting element of the whole event. It was the case, when the audience started to interfere in Abramovic's performance, after she was lying for a long time on an ice block and her belly wound started to bleed heavily. Already during the performance, the spectators expressed their strong inner concern by various body reactions (stop to breath, mourning etc.).

It seemed to be impossible for the audience to establish any distance to the event. Even more, their involvement rose to a degree, which leads to their own activism: The audience did no longer behave like any passive spectator, but transformed into active participants and carried the artist away from the ice block. Thus ending the performance. Performative esthetic does change observer. Performative esthetic can cause these transformations within the artist and the audience. Referring to that context, Dieter Mersch talks about the „Passover of art into the social and public space". He understands the performance as an "intervenes or an >ethic of the praxis<, that transforms the spectator by trend into a participant, a collaborator, that cannot swerve but is forced to take a firm stand."

I make out another, additional neurological aspect in the encounter with the field of pain performance: due to the ephemeral setting of the pictorial events, the consciousness of the perishables of the own existence is mirrored. The pain, that a performer inflicts on him- or herself, is leading to an immediate touch down of experienced or remembered pain in the body of the spectator and is therefore immediately recognized as it-s own vulnerability and fugaciousness.

The biopsychologist Christian Keysers found out, that so called mirror-cells or mirror neurons are able to make a sheer observer feel as if acting themselves, in spite of simply watching. In various test situation with apes, he stated, that the animals reacted to any activity they watched, as if they would enact them themselves. Mirror neutrons do not only become active, when we hug somebody, but as well, when we only watch others hug each other.

Time ago, researcher thought that mirror neurons would only respond to movements. But Christian Keysers did prove, that "the cells do fire as well, when touches or emotions like disgust are being observed." But a main difference between the actual feeling and the sheer outlook is defined by their quantity. While watching any event only some few mirrorcells message their information to the brain, thousands of sensitive cells do fire during any actual action (for example painful skin contacts) and that way change the intensity of emotion. Inspite we all know the "twitching" foot, being co-driver in any car confronted with any unforeseen brake or the goose pimples while watching any disgusting TV scene. Keysers is sure, that the brain is able to suggest any aspects of human emotion due to the existence of this mirror cells. Furthermore an interesting point concerning the mirror cells is that they affect our actions. In these cells optional actions are executed in a kind of style sheet or scheme, so that our actions can be executed absolutely target-orientated.

Mirror cells are thus able to code the actions of other persons for our perception, respectively encode, so that we are able to estimate actions and are able to draw consequences for any reactions to perceived events. This is especially concerning my argumentation concerning the efficiency of the pain performances a central thesis. Confronted with the suffering of artists, we are involved in a way as such that is forcing us to our own reactions downright neurologically. Facing, what humans are able to self-inflict on them, the signal character of pain is obvious, and the one who is amiably contemplating, will maybe be able to understand its appealing character.

Our body is reacting with pains, to protect us against any further dangers, or to protect the organism in general. I would go as far as to claim, that a part of the pain performances does apply a similar principle, to warn the "social body" or so send out pleas to it. Here, too, I do see the wish to spare it of upcoming dangers or at least to point out any optional ones, to achieve an intense attentiveness for various aspects of life circumstances and surroundings. This appeal by the performer, directed to us, is multiply layered: it is about documents of personal despair due to personal injuries, or about political statements, that effectively want to influence social processes and events by the means of using performance art and performative actions. Alike, questions concerning any gender roles, subordination issues or responsibilities are placed in pain performances. All this pleas can be impictured by the means of self-inflicted injuries and while suffering in front of other and be brought to the attention of the spectator. This actions can lead and add to an uncomfortable clear-sightedness and therefore painful themselves. This often leads to a very hostile attitude of rejection on the part of the audience concerning this works of performative art. But on the other hand, something soothing and connecting can be found in the altercatition with these painful images.

Quote: "Pain" does not only inaugurate our own impotence and vulnerability, but makes it possible for us to recognize a soothing possibility of existence - the option of a fraternity in pain". With this closing sentence, Siegfried Lenz is adumbrating one of my central theses: Performance is capable of triggering a quality of interpersonal relationships, especially in pain, that is indispensable for everyone.

In the latest work by Boris Nieslony, that I would like to terminatory describe, many aspects of the lecture will elucidated again: authenticity, co-presence and the spectator's involvement and a personal and common ethically depiction of pain. Here, his more then consequent "self exposing" lead nearly to the complete disembodiment of the artist. In „A Letter of Humanism dedicated to C.C.C.B." (Shown in Barcelona in the year 2000), the artist is nearly dying as a consequence of his performance. I will now extensively quote the wording of Nieslonys from an interview that I was experiencing with him:

"Everything possible went wrong. I had a personal breakdown and a serious disease was detected. I was attending a congress in Barcelona and had a complete breakdown concerning the handling of the performance, theoretically and practically alike. There was no respect, no discussion with the organization, only orders, rebukes and the decisions were left to the hands of the security, who gave me orders, where I would be maybe graciously allowed to perform. I perceived the whole situation as the outmost human disgrace that was utterly painful. I then chose an outdoor location for my performance, backyard, that told me, how my performance would look like, It was a cellar, that was covered with a lattice, apart from that open and downright full of plain stones and scrappy bricklayer materials, it was a kind of storage place for the stone setter of the yard. You could only watch from above through the lattice.

For me, this was a symbolic room, adequate for the performance, for me as the performer and for all the ones that participated in the performance, being spectators. For me, the animal, being the utter scum, and being treated like that there, according to my personal feelings. A situation was found like the old "Bread and Games" public spectacles in the arenas in old Rome. I had installed a little table in the cellar and had bought a strong string and I took a heavy flagstone from the many ones, having being stored there. I knotted the one end of the string around the heavy stone, and adjusted it at the lattice above, there was no other way, and the other end I put as a sling around my neck, I arranged the death photos and many coins on that table. Then I was alternately holding the stone, putting coins on the stone and showed the death photos. Some when I did not hold the stone any longer just let it loose and swing off. I did NOT care.

I was fainting then. For me, it was a wonderful picture: the money and the word "dead“. Someone then took the responsibility and elevated the string and thus loosened it, but I was not able to thank that person for that."

On the one hand, we can state here the utterly humane approach of the performer that categorically repudiates any irretrievably intervention in the life of any other. Additionally Nieslony displays himself being always disappointed, and even disgusted by the lack of respect and "inner squalidness". This countenance is reaching that far, that he is ready to produce his own pictures and imagery while endangering his own life, when it is thus possible for him, to come any bit closer to the phenomenon that he is researching.

I would now like to close with a quotation by the philosopher Byung-Chul Han, which more then perfectly circumscribes the approach of Nieslony and a multitude of other performers:

"The mimesis - to death, a self-displaying nuzzling of being - to death, would in contrast consist of letting all the tears become language, letting all the wounds speak like silver-tongued mouths, as if their elegies would be a ferment of truth, that is redeeming consciousness from its fatal hardening."

THANK YOU!

Helge Meyer, 200?

www.performance-art-research.de

Translation: Sibyll Kalff, 2009