The article just read provided me with plenty of insight regarding performance as a contested concept and how it compares to the conceptual norms of theatrical evens. A statement in the article that stands out to me claims that performance artists "do not base their work upon characters previously created by other artists, but upon...their own specific experiences in a culture...made performative by their consciousness of them and the process of displaying them for audiences." This idea I think goes back to the concept of restored behavior, the version of ourselves that is consciously aware of our own actions. Performance has so many vast mediums that qualify it, however performance can not exist unless the one performing is aware of his/her behavior.
While reading this chapter I keep thinking about a mocumentary film called I'm Still Here. It is a documentary chronicling Joaquin Phoenix as he "retires" from acting and begins his career as a hip-hop artist. This is now considered one of the greater hoax's in Hollywood, though at the time it was being filmed, Joaquin's change of heart along with his heavily increasing drug addiction was considered infallibly genuine. The reason this film is present in my mind is because Joaquin, in hindsight, was clearly giving a performance. Through restored behavior, Joaquin created a character version of himself that was put on display for the public eye for a specific purpose. The most interesting thing about this social experiment is that for several weeks, without knowing Joaquin had no real intention of being a rap star, the public followed his deteriorating star status with such viscosity and judgment that it really made no difference as to whether or not Joaquin was performing. The public viewed and treated it as a performance non the less. I feel there are several times in everyday life where we as the subject have no intention of performing for a person or a group of people. Yet those who are viewing you hold all the power with their judgments and perceptions. We do not get to chose whether or not we are giving a performance. Only the audience can do that for us.
Your example of Joaquin and his slow slip into crazy reminds me of another famous person's decline, Shia LaBeouf. His infamous "I am not famous anymore" phase, where he walked the red carpet with a bag over his head that had that phrase written on it, sounds awfully familiar to Joaquin's drug problem. I wonder if we pay attention to them only because of their fame, or if we are truly intrigued by their struggle, making them seem not as perfect and pristine as the famous are usually portrayed.
ReplyDeleteI also found the point you made about how we as people have no intention of performing for another, and how we do not get to chose whether or not we are giving a performance, very interesting. My mom always talks about how she doesn't mind waiting in a doctor's office because she likes to "people watch". I guess she enjoys the small performances that others play out in the waiting room. People do some strange things when they don't realize they're being watched. When they let their guards down, the way people talk, sit, or occupy the time can be pretty interesting, hilarious, or even strange to watch. While they might not feel like they are necessarily performing for others, with the right imagination, you as a viewer can make anyone a performer in your own head.
But then I think, what qualifies it as a performance? Is it a performance because the viewer says so, or because the performer says so? Does it matter? Can it work both ways? It's like the chicken and the egg. How does a performance begin?