Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Cindy Rehm and Performance Workshop #1

As part of our Womynhouse exhibit, we will be doing a night of performance art on November 2nd.  Our friend and mentor Cindy Rehm from Craftswomanhouse came to LMU on 10.22.11 to do a performance art workshop with the ladies of Womynhouse.

In the workshop we discussed performance, performance artists, and practiced performance ourselves.  We learned that performance art does not necessarily have to be based on theatrical displays but that what you do on a daily basis, such as rituals and processes, can be transformed into performance art.  It is a type of art that can shed light onto our customs as well as serve as a social experiment or an interactive art. Because humans have body knowledge, performance art can be a powerful tool to integrate a visceral feeling into a gallery space. Performance art has the ability to bridge the gap between the audience and the space as well as the audience and the performer. It can also create gaps and/or intense reactions. Because it's happening in real time, there's no manipulation or finessing of the act. It is created using a specific moment in time that cannot be captured or held onto, and during performance the artist cannot start over. As a result, performance art has a certain authenticity that makes it special.

In order to get us started as performance artists, Cindy gave us a sheet of paper with fluxus ideas. For example, one quote said "Scream, scream, scream, scream!" We were left to interpret each quote ourselves, choose a quote and perform it to our liking. To help us get into our performances, we chose from an array of props. It was a great exercise, and next week we will be performing in a second workshop by interacting unexpectedly with a prop that is generally "gender-specific".

Below are photos of our workshop. Thank you Cindy. And thank you Amanda C for providing me with some notes of the experience.
Choosing our Props
Reading Through our Prompt Fluxus Terms
Arielle's Fluxus Exercise
Arielle's Performance Continued
A Discussion of Gender Roles

5for5 Discussion 10.21.11

Featured as part of our opening weekend was 5for5: a discussion led by LMU faculty and students on their personal gender experiences.

Guests on the 5for5 panel included: Philosophy Professor Rosalie Siemon, Rabbi Ilana Schachter, Women's Studies Student Leila Pandy, Film and TV Professor Sue Scheibler, and Dean Barbara Busse of the School of Fine Arts. Attending the discussion were women (and some men) of all ages. We were lucky to have a cross-generational discussion and to share such intimate conversation.

Each guest shared a personal and intimate encounter about their gender experience. On top of the panel members' personal stories, some of the notions we discussed involved: the importance of art and sparking discussion, the term "feminism" and issues related such as why women today are often afraid to be identified by this label, what it means to have/not have certain priveleges and how that factors in on our art, our lives, and our causes, and the way that our minds and bodies are affected by external sources and social norms. All in all, the discussion left me feeling inspired and invigorated, but also with the idea that there is a lot of work to be done in order to enable change and progress. 

We would like to thank to share a special thanks to Erin Mallea and Kenzie O'Keefe for organizing this event. Also, we are greatly appreciative of all the panel members and attendees. And thank you to those who contributed photos!

Below are some of the photographs from 5for5. 
Kenzie Introduces our Panel
From Left to Right: Dean Barbara Busse, Professor Sue Scheibler, Student Leila Pandy, Rabbi Ilana Schacter, Professor Rosalie Siemon
Sitting in our Living Room
Leila Discussing her Personal Experience

Pomona Photos

Hi all. Amanda C provided me with these beautiful photos from our adventure to Pomona College on October 9th, when we went to see Judy Chicago. Although this post is a bit late, I wanted to acknowledge that special day. We felt so encouraged by Judy's words and it was a significant day for us, because it inspired us and added meaning to our own endeavors. Here are some beautiful photos. Thank you, Amanda.






Saturday, October 22, 2011

Opening Weekend



The weekend of October 20th was indeed momentous for the women of our show. Everything we have been working toward day and night, came to a climax this past weekend. The opening, on Thursday night, went extremely well and our turn out was better than we could have imagined, filling the space from 6:15pm and on. Friends, family, teachers, peers, mentors, and future friends showed their support in great numbers. Our 5for5 event Friday night was inspiring and made way for an intimate discussion on matters of importance today, led by LMU faculty and students.

We would like to thank everyone who came to the opening reception and 5for5, for their much appreciated support. The success of Womynhouse would not have been possible without you! The evening was not only a fun celebration, but a remarkable and memorable experience for all of the women in our show.

Though the opening came and went in the blink of an eye, there are still exciting events yet to take place. We are grateful to have the show up until November 11th, and we plan to utilize the space as much as we can during this time through evenings dedicated to the spoken word, performance, and celebration. We encourage you to visit and revisit our house while the show is up and to spread the word to women and men alike.

One of the great hopes that has been born through Womynhouse, is that our cause will be continued beyond the show, and that we will get more artists and people who want to create, to join us in sharing stories and expressions.

We are all very excited to share with you...drumroll please...these photos of the opening.


Thank you!

Monday, October 17, 2011

Womynhouse Opening Reception

Come to our opening reception, full of fantastic art, people, and refreshments! You won't want to miss this.

Date: This Thursday, October 20th
Time: 6-9pm
Place: Loyola Marymount University, Thomas P. Kelly Student Art Gallery

See you there.

Installation Photos

Ari and Lisa

Lisa and Elise



Amanda D

Lisa

Sneak Peak

Amanda C
Couch Cart
Whitening the Walls!
Amanda D and Ari
Erin's and Kenzie's Installation!
Kenzie