Art as a Performance/Fantasy in Video Response

Both of these readings point out the interactive aspect to performance video. In the article, “Art as a Performative Act,” the author uses the metaphor of a game being played, which involves the spectators to participate in the movement of play as they watch the game being played. Putting on a performance takes away from the one sided dynamic video can present. The art becomes a communal festival that everyone participates in and the performance is what unites the performers and all the spectators together. This article also pointed out the use of symbols and how everything in the piece carries a meaning, such as the scrim in Russ’s piece contributing with the healing ritual being presented. Similarly, the “Fantasy in Video” article pointed out that performance art requires viewers to react and because it occurs in real time, it allows the viewer to connect with the piece. The author says that the act of viewing a captured image creates distance from the event while the captured image itself becomes “a relic of the past.” Therefore, performance video breaks down the barrier from the viewer to the performer allowing more interaction and more of a “communal festival.” When reading these articles, I thought of Pes and his work where he takes inanimate objects that look like food, for example, and makes things like guacamole with them. In other works, he personifies couches and tells a short story, mainly using stop motion. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNJdJIwCF_Y I also just re-discovered this other performance video which I thought really combined the new technology with performance art. https://vimeo.com/45417241