Performance Art Project

Originally when brainstorming for a Performance Art idea It was my intent to utilize both a gorilla and chicken suit with some outlandish scene in the middle of campus that would force people to stop and stare, however this comedic act was shallow in meaning and I knew I wanted to dig for more.

 

Then it hit. Monday, April 15th, the Boston Marathon bombings. In the middle of class, the story broke, flooding all social media and news sites, jarring everyone's hearts and minds- from there everything was shaken. Nothing can be related to 9/11, the grandscale of death, pain and tragedy, however in the fourth grade, the depth of the matter was over my head and the fear and pain millions felt from that day and years after, struck a similar chord as I learned Boston, my home, had been attacked. The streets I've walked countless times, the very own marathon I've grown up watching, but most importantly and most chilling of all, the proximity to friends and family. Thankfully my racing mind was relieved with the news no loved onces had been injured, however my heart remained weak and I knew I needed to pour out my passion, love,pain and fear into a performance piece that could pay tribute to the lives lost, the heroes and not only those in MA who had been mentally and physically affected, but the rest of the country, brewing in fear and uncertainty over the multiplying acts of terror. I wanted to remind people of the good in society, the hope, love and peace that we must keep strong to combat the evil.We can't let them win. We need to love harder, live with more appreciation and make it our personal mission to help as many people as possible, to make this world more beautiful so in trying times we're reminded not to give up. We're strong and united and should be encouraging peace. Which is exacty what I decided to do.

Inspired by the culture of the 60s and 70s with protests involving pacifist hippies circling a tree holding signs, I decided to make a big poster board collaged with newspaper clippings of images of the victims of Boston, headings detailing the events and overall, articles, words and pictures that captured the overwhelming amount of ugly in this world. I then decided a symbol, an image would have more effect, capturing attention from the distance so I painted a peace sign, in a cool light blue shade and within the sign included brighter, blissful images that encapsulated serenity and the beauty of life. Within these images I collaged quotes from the Dali Lama and song lyrics promoting peace and love.

I nailed this to the tree directly in front of Sykes, a middle point of campus I believed would capture attention and directly below I left a shoe box with post its, pens, tape and scissors instructing people to leave their own messages of love and support- either in ways they could change the world or how we should live ou lives daily. Once everything had been set up I took a seat on a nearby bench and scouted for close to thirty-forty minutes. The videos are a bit boring besides two segments that show two different sets of girls stopping to leave their mark. Many people, frustrating enough, walked right by completely overlooking it because they were too glued into their phones. I visited again a few hours ater and a couple more post its had been added, and then to my absolute PLEASURE, the next day as I was walking by, fully thinking security would have taken it down already, everything was still there and this time, the tree had a noticebaly greater amount of incredible, heartfelt notes.

This performance art was a more introverted type of reflection, not outlandish and dramatic with costumes and makeup but the idea greatly appealed to me because it related to something I am incredibly passionate about, beyond Boston even, something everyone can share. I wanted people to take a second out of their days, stop and think about the lives they're living and the current events in today's world and what we can do to enrich our lives with peace and love to fight the terror and not curl up in fear. I wanted to convey a sense of support, an outreach and outlet for those in pain, and although the videos aren't highyl entertaining, the build up of notes showed positive feedback and a clear reaction matching my original intent.