Re: [-empyre-] performance, site and situation

[Femke Snelting <snelting@geuzen.org>]

I'm afraid I have not much to add to The Fear of All Men but enjoyed the 
discussion so far ;-)

I was glad, Renee, you brought up 'performance' and 'context' and that 
you picked those examples... to situate a performance, or yourself for 
that matter, as a way to be precise without getting tied to a specific 
context in time for good (strange to talk to you through a list...!).

Performances like Valie Exports' Tapp und Taste Kino (this could also be 
a person wearing  a t-shirt in a specific place with a carefully chosen 
slogan printed on it), can maybe function as a way to think about how 
you can act critically, based on temporary alliances?  I am wondering 
about forms of engagement or commitment that are neither opportunistic 
nor fixed; not strategic (but possibly effective); flexible because they 
respond to the effects of their own gesture?

Most of all I am trying to say that I think we should reserve the right 
(or claim space? or find the courage!) to re-formulate, even when it 
means words/works risk ending up on the wrong side. Oh and that means 
George Bush should be allowed to re-phrase his Iraq policy too :-).

Femke


P.S.: Renee, Riek and me bring each quite different traditions, 
perspectives and backgrounds to the De Geuzen practice and although we 
sometimes joke that together we form our own discipline, it means that 
to be able to make it work, we simply can not assume vocabularies are 
fixed. So we end up discussing bumper stickers using the same terms we 
would use to speak about a performance or an on line work (and vice 
versa of course).