PROSTHETIC GODS

 

 

'Prosthetic Gods' evokes the disenchantments of the digital age by bringing  ‘analog-digital bodies’ into a live environment.  This durational performance took place for 15 hours over the course of two days. This format emulated the continuous loop behavior in contrast to the degenerative and ephemeral nature of the physical presence.  

Tomato prosthetics covered the head and upper body of the performers, often drooping over their faces,  as ways to ‘extend’ or ‘amputate’ the identity of the individual. By revealing parts of the performers’ body, there was a sense of that the performer is still human and therefore vulnerable.

The performance space was filled with a rancid, vinegary smell.  This smell is foreign to most people and caused them to question what they were seeing. Smell, sense that is impossible to replicate with the digital. 

    Tomato remnants piled on the floor, squishing beneath the dancers feet.  Overtime, the wetness seeped through the paper green screen causing it to rip, uncovering a portal from the digital environment to the reality of black stage deck underneath. There is an inherent theatrically in splattering tomatoes onto the stage. Historically, throwing food at the stage has long been a form of protesting a poor or boring performance. Throwing things at the stage was a popular practice at Shakespeare’s Globe theatre, giving the audiences a more active relationship with the performance.  The use of tomatoes in ‘Overgrowth’ pays homage to the legend of critically engaged audiences and also provides a unsatisfied critique of post-digital art. 

 
Panorama - Prosthetic Gods

The live performance happened in on a raised by 8’ x 8’ platform in front of a chromakey green paper backdrop.  The green paper rolled out over floor of the platform forming a seamless transition from vertical to horizontal.  The space behind the green screen was used as a backstage space, but was open for any willing audience members to take a peek.  

To the left  of the stage was a vertical monitor, that offered a different level of engagement with the performance . 

Prosthetic Gods @ PLAY , Hackney Showroom 2017