It’s not what you do, it’s the way that you do it.
Performance for Hidden Rhythms,
with Michael Sellam
Nijmegen, The Netherlands, 2005
This performance brings together a small group of about 5 people in a common enterprise, involving the stacking and ordering of a large quantity of cardboard boxes of unspecified contents and of different sizes. The performance takes place on walkways or in open pedestrian areas during the period of about 1 hour. A group of people are occupied with the activity of assembling a large group of cardboard boxes. From the back of a truck they lay out 3 pallets on the ground and begin to carry the boxes from the back of a van, and pile them in an open space on the 3 separate pallets. They are dressed in a sort of uniform of functional working attire, which resembles that of a store assistant or staff in a warehouse depot. The most senior and superior of the group do not wear a uniform at all but more casual attire.
The group is composed of 2 foremen or superiors and the rest of the group are subordinate workers. They have an assignment to carry out regarding the large number of boxes which are arriving from the back of the van. They engage in all the rituals of a gang of workers or artisans; stopping for a smoke break, or to fool around, or to watch a girl passing by. They work with two porter trolleys as some of the boxes are fairly heavy. The 2 foremen carry clipboards and have the duty of organising the boxes and deciding where they should be placed. Now and then they exchange light-hearted banter with the others, but for the most part they are serious and in a hurried sort of agitation, glancing up and down the street and giving orders as to where the boxes should be placed. They have a limited time to carry out a series of instructions regarding the boxes. As the boxes pile up they fuss around, checking their numbers and ticking these off from lists they keep on the clipboards.
There is thus the semblance of a systematic approach but there is clearly also something whimsical and trivial about this activity. Despite this triviality the collective sense of purpose, urgency and at times playfulness gives this group a potency in the public space. Without being aggressive or invasive they dominate the space and assume a position of importance by virtue of their positive energy and cohesiveness. They seem to find pride in there work, taking care to make a tidy job and clean up any scraps and also not to disturb the flow of traffic. If asked what they are doing they say they are just following orders, they have been ordered to lay out the boxes in certain formations by a certain authority. Apparently it is not their place to ask why, only to get the job done.
When they have completed the third formation, they cover the boxes over with plastic sheeting and tape, and retire for an hour, during which time the three bulky forms are left in the public space. When they return, the boxes are uncovered and returned to the back of the van in the same orderly manner as before. The van is driven away and parked somewhere until the next performance. The workers change into casual clothes and retire for the day.
Performance for Hidden Rhythms,
with Michael Sellam
Nijmegen, The Netherlands, 2005
This performance brings together a small group of about 5 people in a common enterprise, involving the stacking and ordering of a large quantity of cardboard boxes of unspecified contents and of different sizes. The performance takes place on walkways or in open pedestrian areas during the period of about 1 hour. A group of people are occupied with the activity of assembling a large group of cardboard boxes. From the back of a truck they lay out 3 pallets on the ground and begin to carry the boxes from the back of a van, and pile them in an open space on the 3 separate pallets. They are dressed in a sort of uniform of functional working attire, which resembles that of a store assistant or staff in a warehouse depot. The most senior and superior of the group do not wear a uniform at all but more casual attire.
The group is composed of 2 foremen or superiors and the rest of the group are subordinate workers. They have an assignment to carry out regarding the large number of boxes which are arriving from the back of the van. They engage in all the rituals of a gang of workers or artisans; stopping for a smoke break, or to fool around, or to watch a girl passing by. They work with two porter trolleys as some of the boxes are fairly heavy. The 2 foremen carry clipboards and have the duty of organising the boxes and deciding where they should be placed. Now and then they exchange light-hearted banter with the others, but for the most part they are serious and in a hurried sort of agitation, glancing up and down the street and giving orders as to where the boxes should be placed. They have a limited time to carry out a series of instructions regarding the boxes. As the boxes pile up they fuss around, checking their numbers and ticking these off from lists they keep on the clipboards.
There is thus the semblance of a systematic approach but there is clearly also something whimsical and trivial about this activity. Despite this triviality the collective sense of purpose, urgency and at times playfulness gives this group a potency in the public space. Without being aggressive or invasive they dominate the space and assume a position of importance by virtue of their positive energy and cohesiveness. They seem to find pride in there work, taking care to make a tidy job and clean up any scraps and also not to disturb the flow of traffic. If asked what they are doing they say they are just following orders, they have been ordered to lay out the boxes in certain formations by a certain authority. Apparently it is not their place to ask why, only to get the job done.
When they have completed the third formation, they cover the boxes over with plastic sheeting and tape, and retire for an hour, during which time the three bulky forms are left in the public space. When they return, the boxes are uncovered and returned to the back of the van in the same orderly manner as before. The van is driven away and parked somewhere until the next performance. The workers change into casual clothes and retire for the day.