theories of spectatorship in contemporary spatial art

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UNI VERSI TY OF CALI FORNI ASant a Bar bar a

T he or i e s of S pe c t a t o r s hi p i n Co nt e mpo r a r y Spa t i a l Ar t

A Di s s er t at i on s ubm t t ed i n par t i al s at i s f ac t i on of t her equ i r ement s f or t he degr ee Doc t o r o f Phi l o sophy

i n Ar t Cr i t i c al Pr a ct i c es

by

J enni f e r Rae Van. der pool

Co mm t t e e i n c har ge:Dr . Col i n Gar dner , Co- Chai r

P r o f es s o r Ri c har d He bdi ge , Co - Cha i rDr . Susan Der wi n

Pr of es s or J ane Mul f i nger

Sept ember 2010


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UMI Number: 3437282

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T he or i e s of Spe c t a t o r s hi p i n Co nt e mpo r a r y Spa t i al Ar t

Co py r i ght 2010by

J e nni f e r Rae Va nde r po ol

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ACKNOWL E DGEMENTS

I woul d l i ke t o t hank my par ent s Ray and Magg i eVander pool and my br ot her Mi chael as wel l as mygr andpar ent s J ohn and Maxi ne Demko f or t hei r suppor tdur i ng t h i s pr o ce s s . I woul d al s o l i k e t o t hank mycomm t t ee Ri char d Hebd i ge , Susan Derwi n, J ane Mu l f i ngerand i n pa r t i c u l a r Co l i n Ga r d ne r f or e nc o ur a gi ng me t ocompl et e my PhD and ment or i ng me t hr ough t he pr oces s .Addi t i o na l t ha nks t o t he Ar t De pa r t me nt f a c ul t y and s t a f fi nc l udi ng Phi l Ar gent , J ane Cal l i s t e r , L i s a J evbr at t ,Di ego Auc hs t e t t e r , Ka t hi Ca r d i n, Tr el a Cowa n, and Y umKi no s hi t a as we l l as L ynn W l c o xo n i n t he Gr a duat eDi vi s i on.

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VI TA OF J enni f e r Rae Vander poo lJ ul y 2010EDUCATI ONBac hel or of Ar t s i n Hi s t or y, W t t enber g Uni ver s i t y, J une1993Ma s t e r of Ar t s i n Co mmun i t y Ar t s Ac t i v i s m De pa r t me nt ofAr t Educ a t i o n, T he Ohi o St at e Un i ver s i t y , J une 1996Mas t er of Ar t s i n Ar t Hi s t or y, Depar t ment of Ar t Hi s t or y ,Emor y Un i ver s i t y , J une 1999Mas t er of F i ne Ar t s i n Spat i al Ar t s and Cr i t i c al Theor y ,Uni v er s i t y of Cal i f o r n i a, Sant a Bar bar a, J une 2003Doc t o r of Phi l os ophy i n Ar t Cr i t i c al Pr ac t i c es ,Uni v er s i t y of Cal i f or ni a, Sant a Bar bar a, J ul y 2010( expect ed)Sol o Exhi bi t i ons2010, Forgyllda Tradgarda, Abandoned, Mal mo, Sweden. May- J une 2010.2009, Blomster, Vi r s er ums Kons t hal l , Vi r s er um , Sweden.May - Sept ember 2009.2008, Hysterical Paradise, Bandi ni Ar t , Cul v er Ci t y,Ca l i f o r n i a . Oc t o be r - De c embe r 2008.2007, Once Upon a Tart, RACA, Copenhagen, Denmar k .2007, You Look Fantastic, Thank You Ri v er s i de Ar tMus eum Ri ver s i de, Cal i f or ni a.2007, Gloriouslygreedydecadentlydelicious, Es pac i o ElPar t i c ul ar , Mex i c o Ci t y, Mexi c o.2007, Yum Yum , Ur ban Cul t ur e Pr oj ec t , Ka ns a s Ci t y ,Mi s s our i .2006, Bemused, Bandi ni Ar t , Cul ver Ci t y, Cal i f or ni a.2006, Sugary Sweet, L i v i ng Ar t s of T ul s a, Tul s a, Ok l ahoma.Andy Wa r hol F ounda t i o n f or t he Vi s ual Ar t s , F ea t ur e dAr t i s t .2005, Domestic Goddess, Ka l mar Konst Museum Ka l mar ,Sweden.2004, ringaroundtherosie, Sant a Bar bar a Cont empor ar y Ar t sF or um Sant a Bar bar a, Cal i f or ni a.2004, In/Wetlands, Cy - F ai r Col l ege, Ho us t on, Tex as .Sel ec t Gr oup Ex hi bi t i ons2010, Kink: The Seduction of Art, Ko pl i n Del Ri o, Cul v erCi t y , Cal i f or n i a.

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2010, The Nightingale and Chattering Forest, P l at f or m4,Aa l bo r g, Denma r k . ( Col l abor at i on wi t h Anne - Ma r i e Sk r i verHansen) .2009, Structural Integrity, Har r i s Gal l er y, Uni ver s i t y ofL a Ve r ne , L a Ve r ne, Ca l i f o r ni a . Cur a t e d by Di onJ ohns o n.2008, Manmade, Eas t and Peggy Phe l p Ga l l e r i es , Cl a r emontGr a duat e Uni v er s i t y , Cl ar emont , Cal i f or ni a. Cur at ed byDeneva Dans by.2008, External/Internal, SCI ART at Cal i f o r n i a St at eUni v er s i t y , Channel I s l ands , Camar i l l o, Cal i f or ni a.Cur at ed by Ashl ey McL ean Emenegger .2008, Don't Fence Me In, Bandi ni Ar t , Cul ver Ci t y,Cal i f or n i a.2007, 1 x 1 = X: A Germinating Collaboration, NEON,Br o s a r p , Swe de n ( Col l abor at i on wi t h El l e n He dbe r g ) .2007, International Artist Exhibition, Vi z i var o siGa l l e r y , Buda pe s t , Hunga r y .2007, Family Garden, El i z abet h Pai ge Sm t h At el i er ,Veni c e, Cal i f or ni a. Cur at ed by El i z abr t h Pai ge Sm t h andShana Nys Dambr ot .2007, Welcome Home, Ar e na 1, Sant a Moni c a, Ca l i f or ni a .Cur at ed by As hl ey McL ean Emenegger .2007, Pillow Talk, Rut h Ba c ho f ner Ga l l e r y , Sant a Mo ni c a ,Ca l i f o r n i a . Cur at e d by Me r y Lynn Mc Co r k l e .2006, Sacralicious, Whi t t i er Col l ege, Whi t t i er ,Cal i f or n i a. ( Vandal l i s t er i ns t a l l at i on) .2005, Wunderkammer II, Ni na Meno c al Gal l er y , Mex i c o Ci t y ,Me xi c o . Cur at ed by F r edr i c k J ank a. ( Vandal l i s t eri ns t al l at i on) .2005 Re-Imagining Landscapes, Sant a Ba r ba r a Museum ofAr t , Pr oj ec t Gal l er y, Sant a Bar bar a, Cal i f or ni a.( Vandal l i s t er i ns t a l l at i on) .2005, Boundless, S t ener senmuseet , Os l o , Nor way. Ac o l l a bo r a t i o n o r g ani z e d by J an Chr i s t e ns e n and Cur a t e d byHenr y Meyr i c Hughes .2004, Sadie Hawkins Dance, Sout hf i r s t Ar t , Br ook l y n , NewYor k . ( Vandal l i s t er i ns t a l l at i on) .2003, Coming to Terms with the Everyday, Uni ver s i t y Ar tMus eum , I ndi ana Uni ver s i t y, Bl oom ngt on , I ndi ana .Cur at ed by Dana Sper r y .2006

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and

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L ec t ur er ,L ec t ur er ,L ec t ur er ,

Whi t t i er Col l ege, Whi t t er ,Ka l mar Konst Museum Ka l mar ,Ol a nd Sc hoo l of A r t , Ol and,Sant a Ba r ba r a Mus eum of Ar t , Sant aCy - F ai r Col l ege, Cy pr es s , Tex asCr oss r oads Schoo l , Sant a Moni ca ,

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ABSTRACT

T he or i e s of S pe c t a t o r s hi p i n Co nt e mpo r a r y Spat i al Ar t

by

J enni f er Vander poo l

The f ol l owi ng r es ear c h pr oj ec t i nv es t i gat es t heor i es ofs p ec t a t o r s h i p as pl a ye d out i n c o nt e mpo r a r y s pat i alpr a c t i c e s . The e s s ays c omme nt on t he r o l e of t he ar t i s t ,wo r k of a r t , s pec t at or , and r el at i ons h i ps i n- bet weent he s e e nt i t i e s . Re s ea r c h me t hodo l o gi e s e mpl o ye d t oanal y ze wor k s of a r t i nc l ude ar t p r a ct i c e, c r i t i c alt heor y , f i l m t heor y , and l i t er ar y t heor y.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

I . I nt r oduc t i on 1I I . W t nes s i ng Soc i al Hi s t or i es i n Conf i ned Spac es . . . 12I I I . Per f or m ng and Obs er v i ng L i f e 46I V. Abe r r a nt Spe c t a c l e s : Se ei ng t he Uns ee abl e 74V. The Legacy of Scul pt u r e and Pai n t i ng i n t he Expanded

F i el d 102VI . Co nc l us i o n 131Ref er ences 138

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I. Introduction

Rosal i nd Kr aus s c omment ed i n her 1979 cat al og ess ay" E va Hesse : Co nt i ngent " : " T he conso l i da t i on of t hest y l i s t i c hegemony of t he New Yor k School conver t ed apr o vi nc i a l bohem a i nt o a boomt own, a cent er of sel f -conf i dent , aes t het i c energy on whi ch t her e was l avi shedmoney, gl amour , [ and] a t t ent i on. " 1 She ar gued t hatt hi s t r ans i t i on bey ond pr ovi nc i al i s m c r e at ed a publ i car t s c ene. Kr aus s c l ai med t he t er m " p ubl i c " c ar r i ed a" n ot i on of di s co ur se , of a col l ec t i ve l anguage aboutai ms , i deal s , and even r ul es of a gi ven ent er pr i se ,t he conver sa t i on of a mere l y pr i vat e pr eoccupat i oni nt o a di s ci pl i ne. " 2 Di sc our se was t he necess ar y meansf or a publ i c di al ogue t o dev el op. Dur i ng t he s i x t i esnumer o us c r i t i c s and ar t i s t s al i ke began, wi t ht r emendous ar t i cu l at eness and empower ment , t o speakand wr i t e. Kr aus s ex pl ai ned t hat by t he m d- s i x t i es ,ar t magazi nes , most not abl y Art forum, wer e s i gni f i c antvehi c l e s f or t he devel opment of t hi s di s co ur se .Al t hough cr i t i cs i nc l udi ng Thomas Hesse and Davi d

1Rosalind Krauss, "Contingen t" inBachelors, Cambridge and London: MIT Press,1999, p. 91.2Krauss, p. 91.1


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Ant i n wr o t e a bo ut a r t i s t s and e xhi bi t i o ns , t he Ne wYor k ar t s c ene was s t i l l i n t he pr oc es s o f be co m ng.I t was t r ans f or m ng f r om a pr i v at e ar t wor l d, wher ef r i ends wr ot e r e vi ews of eac h ot her ' s e xhi bi t i ons , t oa publ i c ar t s c ene wi t h mor e pr of es s i onal ar t i s t s ,c r i t i c s , and c ur at or s . Kr aus s a r g ued t h at Ev a Hes s ewas t he ar t i s t who emer ged and most benef i t ed f r om t hec ompl et ed t r ans i t i on.

The publ i s hed wr i t i ngs of ar t i s t s and cr i t i c si mbued t hei r i de as a nd opi ni o ns a s voi c e s o faut hor i t y; t hei r aut hor i t y r es ul t ed f r om t he publ i cnat ur e of d i s c o ur s e . Kr aus s c l ai med: " Aut hor i t y [ was ]t he c o ns e quenc e of di s c o ur s e , of t he s et t i ng up of apr o bl e ma t i c wi t hi n and a ga i ns t whi c h a do m na nt voi c ec an es t abl i s h i t s e l f . Aut ho r i t y c annot b e me r e l y apr i vat e af f ai r . " 3 He r e i n l i es t he pa r a do x of He s s e' swo r k a s an e mbo di me nt of s i x t i e s ae s t he t i c di s c o ur s e :i t d epended on t h i s publ i c di s c us s i on whi l eunder m ni ng i t s aut hor i t y wi t h her c hoi c es ofma t e r i a l i t y . " Cont i ngent , " whi c h s he c r eat ed i n 1969

3 Krauss, p. 92.

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and appear ed on t he cover of Art forum i n May 1970,ex empl i f i ed t hi s anomal y ( I l l us t r at i on 1) . 4

By t he l at e s i x t i es , He s s e des i r e d t o c r eat el ar ger - s c al e s cul pt ur es and hi r ed s t udi o as s i s t ant s t ohe l p her wi t h " Co nt i nge nt " and r e l at e d wo r ks . 5 Hessebe gan t o f abr i c at e t he ei ght h andc r a f t ed, r epl i c at edbanner s , but event ual l y wor ked wi t h Doug J ohns andot her s t udi o as s i s t ant s t o r eal i z e t he pi ec e. Theyl ayer ed cheesec l o t h i n l a t ex and t hen submer sed eachf or m i n f i ber gl as s . Thr ough t hi s pr oc es s , Hes s ec r eat ed an ex pr es s i v e qui r k i ne s s t o t he r e pet i t i v egeomet r i c el ement s of " Cont i ngent , " wh i ch sheex hi bi t ed i n t he " Ar t i n Pr oc es s I V" ex hi bi t i on at

4To view an image of this work please visit:h t tp: / /nga.gov .au/EXHIBITION/SOFTSCULPT URE/Defau l t.cfm?IRN=49353&BioArtis tIRN= 15232&MnuID=3&ViewID=25 Michelle Barger, "Thoughts on Replication and the Work of Eva Hesse," TatePapers. London: Ta te's On-line Researc h, Autum n, 2007.Jowrahttp://www.tate.org.uk/research/tateresearch/tatepapers/07autumn/barger.htmArt historians discussion of why He sse hired assistants is at best contradictory: fewnote that she wanted to build larger pieces as explained by Michelle Barger in"Thoughts on Replication and the Work of Eva Hesse" in the on-line journal TatePapers, while many including Lucy Lippard suggested that she hired them becauseof her illness. Hesse s uffere d from a series of malignant brain tumors that prove dfatal in May 1970. Presum ably the truth lies somew here in between these historicalstatements.

3
http://nga.gov.au/EXHIBITION/SOFTSCULPTURE/Default.cfm?IRN=49353&Biohttp://www.tate.org.uk/research/tateresearch/tatepapers/07autumn/barger.htmhttp://www.tate.org.uk/research/tateresearch/tatepapers/07autumn/barger.htmhttp://nga.gov.au/EXHIBITION/SOFTSCULPTURE/Default.cfm?IRN=49353&Bio


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F i nc h Col l ege Mus e um of Ar t . Hes s e c onf i gur ed" Co nt i nge nt " s o t ha t i t e nga ge d wi t h and f ur t he r e ds i x t i e s ae s t he t i c s . She s us pe nded ea c h ba nnerper pendi c ul ar t o t he wal l . " F r o m t he f r ont , t he v i ew[ was ] o f t he el ement s ' edges wi t h t h ei r s c ul pt ur alc ondi t i on ec l i ps i ng t hat of t he pi c t o r i al ; f r om ar a ki ng angl e , one' s pe r c e pt i o n [ was ] of t he s ur f ac e sof t he ba nne r s a nd t he pl a na r i t y of t he r e c t a ngul a rf i el ds , a per c ept i on t hat f or egr ound t he pi c t or i alas p ec t of t he e xpe r i e nc e . " 6 Kr auss obser ved t hat t hedoubl e per spect i ve of t he wor k evoked an anamor phos i s ,s i m l ar t o t he bl ur r ed i mage of t he s kul l at t he f e etof t he r i c hl y dr es s ed em s s ar i es i n Hans Hol bei n' s

1542 pai nt i ng " The Ambass ador s . " When t he vi ewer movedn i net y degr ees away f r om her no r ma l vant age poi n t ands t at i one d her s e l f at i t s edge, s he c oul d f or es hor t enand c o nt r a c t t he a mo r p ho us f or m t o r ead t he s kul l .Si m l ar l y , Hes s e' s doubl e per s pec t i v e f unc t i oned as ana na mo r pho s i s . Kr a us s c l a i med t hat " Co nt i nge nt "ec l i p sed medi a and convent i ons , a l t hough she di d notexpl or e how t he spect at or needed t o engage her body t o

6 Ibid., p. 99.

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e xpe r i e nc e t he i nnov at i v e qual i t i es of t he wor k - - t henec e s s i t y of t he v i e we r a s an a mbul a t o r y , mul t i -s e ns o r y a ge nt f ur t he r s K r a us s ' a r g ume nt .

Hes s e e mpl o ye d t he c odi f i ed aes t het i c s of s i x t i esar t wi t h her us e of r epet i t i v e geo met r i c f or ms t hatevoked bot h t wo and t hr ee- d i mens i ona l wor k . She t henar r anged t hese el ement s t o suggest t he i dea ofs c u l pt ur e i n t he e xpa nded f i el d and c r e at e d a ha pt i ce nv i r o nme nt f or s p ec t a t o r s t o wa l k a r o und; al l t hewhi l e s he us ed e xpr e s s i ve ma t e r i a l s , t her e bycont ext ual i z i ng her own pr ac t i ce . Kr auss comment ed:" What t he i mage of Contingent was de l i v er i ng t o t hewor l d was a dec l a r a t i on about t he expr ess i ve power ofmat t er i t s el f , of ma t t e r h el d down t o a l ev el of t hes ubar t i c ul at e. I n ar t - hi s t or i c al t er ms we woul d s ayt hat Contingent wa s c o unt e r i ng t he f o r ma l i s t di a l o gueof t he 1960s wi t h t he message of expr ess i oni sm " 7The mo s t p owe r f u l c ha r a c t e r i s t i c of " Co nt i nge nt " wa sHesse ' s concer n wi t h edges : be t ween pai n t i ng andscu l pt u r e , be t ween wa l l and f l oor , and bet weenc o nvent i o n and a va nt - ga r d e, and f ur t her i ng Kr a us s '

7 Krauss, p. 92.

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obs e r v a t i ons , be t we en s pec t at or and par t i c i pa nt .He s s e ' s wo r k c on t i nua l l y s hi f t e d a mo ng t hes e" be t weens . " 8

I t seems necessar y t o expand t h i s concept o f edgeand t o s i t ua t e He s s e ' s wo r k i n " p er c e pt ua ldi s p l a c eme nt " ; a t e r m F r edr i c J a mes o n e mpl o ye d t odi s c us s di s pl ac ed peo pl e dur i ng t he s i x t i es as be i ngc onc ept ual i z ed as " n ei t her - nor . " 9 P er c ept ualdi s p l a c eme nt wa s a t hi r d no n- pl a c e. I n He s s e ' s wo r k" t he be t we ens " f unc t i o ne d i n a di a l e c t i c a l ma nner t ocr eat e a new e l ement t hat moved i n per cept ualdi s p l a c eme nt , bo t h i nvol ved wi t h and uni n t e r e s t e d i nt he s i x t i es ar t s c ene. J ames o n wr ot e: " i t [ was ] s ur el ya ga i ns t a c er t a i n c onc ept i o n of what [ was ]hi s t or i c al l y dom nant or hegemoni c t hat t he f ul l v al ueof t he except i onal . . . [ coul d] be ass essed . " 10 Hess e ' s wor kembodi ed t he excep t i ona l among s i x t i es ar t as he roeuvre u l t i mat el y ques t i oned t he c onv ent i on ofi dent i f y i ng an ar t wor k by di s c i pl i ne. The r u pt ur esc r eat ed by he r t wo and t h r ee- di mens i ona l wor k ,

8 Ibid., p. 100.9Fredric Jameson, "Periodizing the Sixties," p. 202.10 Ibid., p. 178.

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evocat i ve use of ma t e r i a l s , s ymbol i c r ef er ence t o hercont empor ar i es ' ar t , and engagement of spect at or spr oduced a concept ua l space t hat encour aged l a t erar t i s t s t o wor k i nt er di s c i pl i nar y. Many ar t i s t s whoc ul t i vat ed t hi s mul t i - di s c i pl i nar y pr ac t i c e pr oduc edwor ks t hat dynam cal l y r el at ed t he i n- bet weenc har ac t er i s t i c s Hes s e c r eat ed i n her pr ac t i c e. Thef ol l owi ng chapt er s comment on how ot her women ar t i st swho work i n t he l egacy of Hesse ' s pr ac t i ce expl o i t edt he r upt ur es she devel oped i n her work t or ec ont ext ual i z e t he r o l e of t he ar t i s t , wor k of ar t ,spec t at or , and r el at i onshi ps i n- bet ween th eseent i t i es . I n t hi s way Hes s e as a pr ac t i t i oner , who

wor ked dur i ng t he f i r s t gener a t i on f em ni s t movementwi t h cont empor ar i es i nc l udi ng Anne Tr ui t t whose wor kwi l l be di s cussed i n chapt er f our , f unc t i oned as ar ol e- model f or t he emer gi ng Sevent i es Fem ni s t Ar tmovement and subsequent gener at i ons of women ar t i st s.

Chapter One: Witnessing Social Histories in ConfinedSpaces

I n t hi s chapt er I expl or e a concept ofspec t at or shi p i n whi ch bot h t he ar t i s t ( or her

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r epr es ent at i v e) and v i ewer s par t i c i pat e as s oc i alagent s i n cons t r uc t ed env i r onment s as exempl i f i ed byAnn Ham l t on' s i ns t al l at i ons " Mal edi c t i on, " 1991- 92and " T r opos , " 1993- 94. Ham l t on empl oyed t he soc i a land pol i t i c al hi s t o r y of her e xhi bi t i on s i t es t odev el op t he s ubj ec t ma t t e r of h er i ns t al l a t i ons . Shede f i ned t he na r r a t i ve s t r uc t ur e of t he wo r ks ands i t uat ed her s e l f or her " t ender " ( r epr es ent at i v e) as as t o r y t el l er pr es ent i n t he i ns t al l at i ons t hat i n t ur npo s i t i o ned v i e we r s ' i nt er ac t i ons wi t h her wo r k s andt hei r s ubj ec t mat t er . I n " Mal edi c t i on" Ham l t onr ev i s i t ed t he s t or y of l abor s at t he t ur n of t he l as tc ent ur y and bui l t a mul t i - f ac et ed i ns t a l l at i on t o t el l

her i nt er pr et at i on of t hei r s t o r y . I ar gue t hatHa m l t on s i t uat ed her s e l f as a wi t nes s t o t hel abor er s ' pl i ght s and v i e we r s as wi t ne s s es t o herpr e s e nt a t i o n of t he s t o r y . W t h t he s ubs e que nt wo r k" Tr opos " Ham l t on f abr i c at ed an i ns t al l at i onenv i r onme nt s i m l ar t o a vant - gar de t heat er i n whi c hs p ec t a t o r s a s enga ge d pa r t i c i pa nt s and obs e r ver swa l ked t hr o ugh t he i ns t a l l a t i o n s pac e o c c upi e d by t he

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t ender and cont r i but ed t o each pa r t i cul ar unf o l di ng oft he wor k ' s nar r at i ve.

Chapter Two: Performing and Observing Life

Cha pt er Two f ur t her di s cusses t he ar t i s t as as t or yt el l er who c ons t r uc t s , par t i c i pat es i n, andobser ves nar r a t i ves . I devel oped t hese i deas t hr oughan anal y s i s o f El eanor Ant i n' s wor k s f r om t hesevent i es i n whi ch she empl oyed hers e l f as subj ec t i nher l i f e per f or ma nces . Ant i n cons t r uc t ed per so na e th atex i s t ed i n a s el f - f abr i c at ed s pac e bet ween her l i f e asan ar t i s t and t he i magi nar y r eal m of h er cha r a c t er sand ar t . She empl oyed her body as a cr eat i ve f r am ngdev i ce. These pe r so nae , i nc l udi ng a gene r i c ba l l e r i naand an equal l y unr emar kabl e k i ng, subs i s t ed ons oc i al l y c ons t r uc t ed my t hol ogi es o f t he i deal s t hateach f i gur e symbol i zed and Ant i n' s expe r i ences l i v i ngher l i f e as t hes e c ul t ur al l y f abr i c at ed obj ec t s .Thr ough her per f or mances, Ant i n cr eat ed a br i dgebet ween her pr i vat e per cept i ons and pr esent a t i ons o fcul t ur a l symbo l s and a publ i c d i scour se wi t h how

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spec t at or s i nt e r a c t ed wi t h her per f o r m ng t hesec har ac t er s dur i ng day - t o- day l i f e.

Chapter Three: Aberrant Spectacles Seeing theUnseeable

Chapt er Thr ee addr esses how t he spect at or i nt er act swi t h t he wor k of ar t as a f i gur at i v e obj ec t . I ex pl or et hese i deas t hr ough Pet ah Coyne' s ant hr opomor phi cscu l pt ur es . These f or ms appear as s ynecdoches o f t hehuman body met amor phosi ng f r om bei ng pr esent t hr oughst ages of agi ng t hat somet i mes s uggest deat h. Coynepo s i t i oned t he aes t het i c i zed gr ot esque f i gur es asspec t ac l es t hat ex i s t ed i n her cons t r uc t ed spaces ,whi ch s t ym ed communi ca t i on, whi l e s i mul t aneous l yquest i oned how spect at or s coul d r eact t o t heseant hr opomor phi c f orms. I ana l yze her wor k as acont r i but i on t o t he di scuss i on and cont emporar yr econt ex t ua l i za t i on of b eaut y and subl i me.

Chapter Four: The Legacy of Sculpture and Painting inthe Expanded Field

Chapt er Four l ooks at how t he l egacy cr eat ed byf i f t i es and s i xt i es ar t pr ac t i c es , and t he i nt er pl ay

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of no n- r epr e s ent a t i o n and abs t r ac t i on, as wel l as t heconcur r ent di scuss i ons about phenomeno l ogy i n f l uencedt he devel opment of spec t a t o r sh i p. The essayi nv es t i gat es e xampl es f r om J es s i c a St oc k hol der ' s wor kdur i ng t he ni net i es and pas t decade i n wh i ch sheexpanded on t h i s l egacy. S t ockhol der assembl ed mass -pr oduced mat er i a l s t o cr eat e a new non-r e pr es e nt a t i onal pr a ct i c e t hat e nhanc ed s pec t at or s 'r ecept i ons beyond t he hapt i c env i r onment t o i nc l ude anas s e s s ment of t he wor k s ' ma t e r i a l i t y and r es ul t i ngs ymbol i s m

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Chapter II. Witnessing Social Histories in ConfinedSpaces

A must y smel l gr eet ed v i s i t o r s as t hey ent eredHam l t on' s i ns t al l at i on " Mal edi c t i on, " 1991- 92 atL ouv er Gal l er y i n New Yor k ( I l l us t r at i on 2) . 1;LSpec t at or s c r os sed t he t hr eshol d i nt o th ei ns t al l at i on' s env i r onment c l oak ed i n a f et i d s t enc h.Si t uat ed on t he f l oor of t he gal l er y wer e r a gs t hatHam l t on co l l ect ed and t hen soaked i n r ed wi ne andwr ung out wi t h wat er . She ar r anged t he r ags t o appearl i ke ant hr opomorphi c f or ms t hat i nhabi t ed t he space.The scal e of t he obj ec t s c r eat ed a scenar i o i n whi chvi s i t or s obj ec t i f i ed t he or gani c - l i k e s cul pt ur es ast hey pl ot t ed t hei r way ar ound t hem Ham l t on bui l t awal l t hat shr ouded t hese f i gur at i ve e l ement s i n t hei rs t i nky env i r onment and separ at ed th em f r om ot here l ement s i n t he i ns t a l l a t i on. Speaker s embedded i n t hewal l i nt oned an audi o of a s t udi o a s s i s t a nt ' s voi ceso l emnl y r eadi ng sel ec t i ons f r om Wal t Whi t man' s 1855poems " Song of Myse l f " and "The Body El ect r i c" t hat

11To view an im age of this work please visit:http ://www.pbs.org/art21 / artists/ham ilton/ card2 .htm l

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f ur t he r e nvel o pe d v i e we r s i n t he e nv i r o nme nt of t hei ns t al l at i on.

Ham l t on s at at a r ef ec t or y t a bl e i n t he m ddl e oft he s ec o nd ga l l e r y wi t h her ba c k t o wa r ds t he ent r a nc e .Vi s i t o r s a ppr o ac hed Ha m l t o n and o bs e r ved her pi c k i ngup ba l l s o f d ough f r om a whi t e ba s i n and put t i ng t hemi n her mout h. She b i t down and t hen p l aced t hei mpr e s s i o n i n a s mal l wi c ker c as ket t hat at t he t ur nof t went i et h c ent ur y was us ed t o t r ans por t a c hi l d' sbody t o t he mor gue. The noi se cr eat ed by her act i onscoupl ed wi t h t he smel l of t he dough enhanced t he non-t angi bl e s mel l and audi t or y c har ac t er i s t i c s of t hei ns t al l at i on. Bed l i nens s t ac ked agai ns t t he wal l i nf r ont of t he t abl e l i m t ed her v i ew.

Ham l t on di scuss ed t he devel opment of her wor ks ofar t as c r eat i v e, r es ear c h ef f or t s . I n an i nt er vi ewwi t h Ma r y Ca t h er i ne Cof f ey , Ha m l t o n e xpl ai ned herr es ear c h pr o c es s :I t hi nk one r e ads f or o ne ' s o wn purposes. . . . I o f t enr espond to. . . a poe t i c phr as i ng. I t ' s t he way t wowor ds s i dl e up aga i ns t each o t her . I n t hose wor dsi s t he r el at i ons hi p you ar e l ook i ng f o r , s eek i ngi n your que s t i o ns and wo r k . I wi l l r e ad be t we en

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and ac r os s a l ot of di f f er ent t hi ngs . 12She c o mme nt e d t hat s i t e v i s i t s t o t he l o c at i o ns whe r es he s c hedu l e d i ns t a l l a t i o ns wer e i mpor t ant i n herdevel opment of t he wor k . She r esea r ched t he hi s t o r yand s t or i es about t he l oc at i on, whi l e s he i nt ui t i v el yr es ponded t o i t s env i r o nment dur i ng t he v i s i t s . Cof f eynot ed i n her di s c us s i o n wi t h Ha m l t o n: " As yo ur wo r k[ bec ame] mo r e over t l y c onc er ned wi t h hi s t o r y , i t[ br ought ] out t he i nv i s i bi l i t i es of o ur c i vi c memor y ,t he di s j unc t i o n be t wee n our i deal s and our pr a ct i c es .You have al ways honor ed domest i c and l ow or nonwagel abor a s an i nv i s i bl e e c onomy . " " Mal edi c t i on"e xe mpl i f i e d t he i deas t hat Ha m l t o n and Co f f e ydi s c us s e d dur i ng t he i nt er v i ew.

T he s i t e of L ouver Ga l l e r y , t hen l oc at ed i n So Ho ,was a t t he t ur n of t he l as t c ent ur y a ma nu f a c t u r i ngdi s t r i c t t hat i nc l uded t ext i l e f ac t or i es . Mi l l sempl oyed most l y i mm gr ant s , women, and ch i l d r en i nde pl o r a bl e wo r k env i r o nme nt s t hat u l t i ma t e l y l ed t ot he 1911 Tr i ang l e Fact or y f i r e when 146 empl oyeesdi ed. The t i t l e of Ham l t on' s i ns t a l l at i on

12Ann Ham ilton interviewed by M ary Katherine C offey,Art Journal, 60, No . 3 Fall2001, pp. 10-23.


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" Mal edi c t i on" me ans c u r s ed; s he f oc us ed an hi s t or i c all ens on t he f o r g ot t en, uns e en l a bo r e r s . T he s edi senf r anch i sed wor ke r s wer e " cur sed" by pover t y andpoo r wo r k i ng c o ndi t i o ns a nd s ubs i s t e d i n a s t at e ofabj ec t i on t hat pr ev ent ed subj ec t i v i t y. Ham l t onr eveal ed t hei r exi s t ence and i n do i ng so pa i d homaget o t he wo r ker s t hr o ugh " Ma l e di c t i o n. " She c r e a t e d ani ns t a l l a t i on env i r onment i mbued wi t h symbo l i c mean i ngst hat l ay er ed t he wor k er s ' s t or y wi t h ot her c ul t ur almor es . The wi ne soaked r ags s t r ewn ac r oss t he f l oor oft he f r ont gal l er y wer e r i pe wi t h s ubt ex t s . The r agss ugges t ed bo t h t he bl o od of Chr i s t and hi s h um l i t yand s a cr i f i c e as a Chr i s t i an s av i or as wel l as t hebl ood of t he anonymous l abor er s many of whoms ac r i f i c ed t hei r l i ves wor k i ng i n oppr es s i v ec ondi t i ons .

Si m l a r t o a monk who sa t and at e at a r e f ec t o r yt abl e i n a me di e va l mo na s t e r y , Ha m l t o n s at at t het abl e and b i t down on p i eces o f dough and t hen p l acedt he mol de d ba l l s of dough i nt o a c hi l d' s ol d- f a s hi o ne dco f f i n. She t r ans f o r med t he mundane t ask of eat i ngi nt o a r i t ual i n whi c h s he pr e t e nde d t o eat but

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u l t i ma t e l y had not hi ng t o eat - - r aw do ugh i s notbr ead . Nonet hel ess , she pe r f o r med t he ac t s andat t empt ed t o enac t t he r i t ual . Ham l t on' s per f or mat i v ea ct s of d eny i ng he r s e l f s us t e na nc e c o nx t ua l i z e d t hedough as a f e t i sh obj ec t and i mbued i t wi t h symbo l i cmeani ngs. The dough evoked Cat hol i c communi on whenpa r i s h i o ne r s c ons ume wa f e r s t ha t s ymbo l i z e Chr i s t ' sbo dy , whi l e her a c t i o ns s ugge s t e d m l l wo r ke r s who s er epet i t i v e ef f or t s c o nt r i but ed t o t he mas s pr oduc t i onof g oods . The s i gni f i c at i ons of h er r i t ual s wer euni f i ed by t he al i enat i on t hat r es ul t ed f r om herbehav i o r . The dough symbo l i zed Chr i s t ' s bodys ac r i f i c ed and wi t hi n t he par amet er s o f Ham l t on' s

i ns t al l at i on, t he body of t he unk nown l abor ersuppl ant ed t he mean i ng of Chr i s t ' s body . The wor ke r s 'bo di es wer e s ac r i f i c ed f or ma s s pr oduc t i o n.

I n " Mal edi c t i on, " Ham l t on made v i s i bl e heri nt er pr et at i on of t he l abor er s ' pl i ght and i n doi ng s oc r e at ed a s t or y r i c h wi t h l ay er s of s oc i o- c ul t ur al andr el i gi ous s y mbol i s m f or v i ewer s t o obs er v e andsupposedl y cont empl at e . She r ecount ed t hedi s enf r anc hi s ed l abor er s ' pl i ght and as a r es ul t

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c o ns t r uc t e d a s o c i al bo nd be t we en her s e l f t hei nqui r er , t he a ddr es s e e or s pec t at or , and t he r ef er ent- t he wor ke r s whose s t o ry s he enl i vened. 13 J ean-F r a ngo i s L yo t a r d a r g ue d t hat t he s oc i al bo nd c r ea t e dby t he t e l l i ng of t he na r r a t i ve i s a l a ngua ge ga me ,t he " game of i nqui r y . " Y et , L ouv er Ga l l e r yc ont ex t u al i z ed t he r ec ept i on of Ham l t on' s wor k , s ot ha t her nar r a t i ve was no t mer e l y a conver sa t i on amongf r i ends i n whi c h " q ues t i ons , r eques t s , as s er t i ons , andnar r at i v es [ wer e] l aunc hed pel l - mel l i nt o bat t l e. " 14The gal l er y as an i ns t i t ut i on c ons t r ai ne d s t at ement st o t hos e deemed adm s s i bl e wi t hi n i t s b ounda r i es .Thes e r es t r i c t i ons del i m t ed di s c ur s i v e pot ent i al s andot her modes o f communi cat i on wi t h i n t he l anguagegames , whi l e i t a l s o pr i v i l eged " c er t ai n c l as s es ofs t a t e me nt s , " na me l y ga l l e r y d ec o r um

Spe c t at o r s e nt e r e d t he ga l l e r y a nd c r o s s ed t het hr es hol d i nt o t he s t or y t h at Ham l t on unf ol ded f ort hem They wa l ked t hr ough t he env i r onment t hat shes hr ouded i n aur al and ol f ac t or y s ens i bi l i t i es and t hen

13 Jean-Francois Lyotard. The Postmodern Condition: A Report on Knowledge,Minne apolis: U niversity of Minnesota P ress, 1999, p. 15.14 Ibid., p. 17.

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obs er v ed her per f or m r epet i t i v e ac t s s eem ngl y wi t hr i t ual under pi nni ngs . She kept v i s i t or s at ar m sl engt h, as onl y obs e r ver s a nd not e nga ge d pa r t i c i pa nt swho c o ul d c o nt r i but e t o t he c o nver s a t i o n and i n- t ur nadd t o t he f o r mat i on of a publ i c d i s c o ur s e . As not e di n t he i nt r oduc t i on, Kr a us s ar gued t hat t he t er m" p ubl i c " c ar r i es a ".... not i on of di s c our s e, of ac o l l e c t i ve l a ngua ge abo ut t he ai ms , i de al s , and evenr ul es of a gi v en ent er pr i s e , t he c onv er s a t i on ofmer el y pr i v at e pr eoc c upat i on i nt o a di s c i pl i ne. " 15Ha m l t o n t ur ne d her b ac k on s p ec t a t o r s r a t he r t ha nengage t hem i n di s c us s i ons a bout " Ma l edi c t i on. " Shenegl ec t ed t he oppor t uni t y t o f os t er a publ i c d i s c our s ewi t h spec t a t o r s and i ns t ead empl oyed t he " l ook don' tt ouc h" pol i c y of a r t i ns t i t ut i ons t o f ur t her di s t anc ev i ewer s . Ham l t on pos i t i o ned s pec t at or s as obs er v er st o her pr i v at e c o nt empl at i ons .

Yet , i n " Mal edi c t i on" Ham l t on s uc c eeded i nr ev i v i ng t he l ong f or got t en wor k er s ' pl i ght s and i ndo i ng so ma de t hei r s t or i e s r e l e va nt t o he rcont empor ar y moment . Lyot ar d comment ed, " By way of a

15 Rosalind Krauss, "Contingent" inBachelors, Cambridge and London: MIT Press,1999, p. 91.

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s i mpl i f y i ng f i c t i on, we c an hy pot hes i z e t hat , agai ns tal l expec t a t i ons , a c ol l ec t i v i t y t hat t akes nar r at i veas i t s key f or m of compet ence has no need t o r ememberi t s pas t . " 16 Ham l t on empl oyed t he r aw mat e r i a l of t hewo r ke r s ' s t or i e s as he r nar r a t i ve e l e me nt and t hr o ught he s t r uc t ur e of her i ns t al l at i on c r e at ed a l anguagegame t ha t cu l t i vat ed a soc i a l bond bet ween her as t hes t or y t el l er and s pec t at or s as t he l i s t eni ng and s eei ngaudi enc e. Ha m l t o n' s a ct of t el l i ng t he s t or y ma de t h ewor k er s ' hi s t or y cont empo r a neo us wi t h her r ec i t a t i on.I t was t he ephemer al moment of t empor al i t y as s her ev eal ed t he na r r at i v e of t he wor k er s ' s t r uggl es t hatt hei r h ar ds h i ps ex i s t ed i n a l i m nal s pac e be t weenHa m l t on c onv ey i ng " y ou wi l l he ar " a nd v i ewer s s t at i ng" I hav e he ar d. "

Ham l t on r e c ont e xt ual i z e d t he s t or y of t he uns e enl abor er s f r om t he l as t c ent ur y i n " Mal edi c t i on" a nd i nt ur n c r eat ed a nar r at i v e s t r uc t ur e anal ogo us t o t hem s s i ng peopl e i n what Gi l l es Del euz e i dent i f i ed asmo de r n po l i t i c a l c i ne ma . 17 De l euze a r gued t ha t " Thi r d

16 Lyotard, p. 22.17Gilles Deleuze, "Cinema, body, brain, thought," in Cinema 2, L Image-Temps.London : The Athlone Press: 1989, pp. 216-217.

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Wor l d and m nor i t i es gave r i se t o aut hor s who woul d bei n a pos i t i on, i n r el at i on t o t hei r n at i on and t hei rper s onal s i t uat i on i n t hat nat i on, t o s ay: t he peopl ear e what i s m s s i ng. " 18 Thi s i s s i m l ar t o t henar r at i ve Ham l t on c ons t r uc t ed i n her i ns t al l at i on i nwhi c h s he v i s u al l y po r t r a ye d t he wor k er s ' s t or y , butnot t he wo r ke r s . De l e uz e expl a i ne d t hat t he i ns t a nc e aco l oni ze r or mas t e r p r oc l a i med t he absence of t hesepeopl e; t he di s e nf r a nc hi s e d ex i s t ed i n a dy nam c s t at eof becom ng. They i nvent ed t hemsel ves i n newcond i t i ons o f s t r ugg l e among shant y t owns, camps, andghe t t os and t he r e by c ont r i but e d t o t he c o ndi t i o ns t ha tenabl ed t he f or mat i on of s oc i o- c ul t ur al di s c our s est hat r es ul t ed i n t he dev el opment of pol i t i c al ar t . I nt he c as e of Ham l t on' s " Mal edi c t i on, " t he l abor er swor k i ng c ondi t i ons uni f i ed t he i ns t al l at i on' sna r r a t i ve and f o s t e r e d t he e nv i r o nme nt f or t hedeve l opment of a di scour se t ha t enabl ed her t o r espondt o t hei r s t or y. The s t r uggl es of t hes e m s s i ng i nt hei r e f f or t s t o exi s t made t hei r pr i v at e af f ai r s" i mmedi at el y pol i t i c al and ent ai l ed a v er di c t of l i f e

18Ibid., p. 217.

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or d ea t h . " 19 De l euze ment i oned Sout h Af r i can c i nema asan e xa mpl e i n whi c h t he c or r e l a t i o n of t he pr i vat e a ndpol i t i c al c oexi s t ed t o t he poi nt o f abs ur di t y pi t t i ngar c hai c myt hs , pr ophet i s m and bandi t i s m agai ns tc api t al i s t v i ol enc e, " as i f t he peopl e wer e t ur ni ngand i nc r e as i ng a gai ns t t he ms e l ves t he v i o l e nc e t hatt hey s uf f er [ e d] f r om s o me whe r e e l s e out of a need f or

O A

i dol i z at i on. " He ar gued t hat t hi s s c enar i o c r eat ed" t he g r eat es t agi t pr op c i nema t hat has ever beenmade. " 21 P ol i t i c al ar t no l onger exi s t ed f or c ons c i ousr ai s i ng pur pos es , i t e xi s t ed t o c r e at e a t r anc e t h atsubsumed t he peopl e and t hei r mast er s as we l l as t hec amer a, t hus f or c ef ul l y pr oduc i ng a s t at e ofaber r at i on i n whi ch t o communi cat e v i o l ence and makepr i vat e bus i nes s s l i p i nt o t he pol i t i c al and pol i t i c alaf f ai r s i nt o t he pr i vat e. Ham l t on t he s t or yt el l erf ac i l i t at ed a s i m l ar dynam c i n " Mal edi c t i on" i nwhi ch she c r eat ed an aber r ant env i r onment t o t e l l t hel abo r e r s ' s t o r y , and t her eby comment ed on t he l a rger

19 Ibid., p. 218. Deleuze cited Franz K af ka 's writing in this passage. He noted thatKafka suggested "major" literatures differentiated between the political and theprivate, no matter how dy namic the border see med, while minor literatures situatedthe private as political.20 Ibid., p. 218.21 Ibid., p. 219.

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s ubj ec t of l abor hi s t or y . Thi s dy nam c s l i ppagebe t wee n t he bo undar i es o f pr i v at e and po l i t i c aldi s c o ur s e c ont i nuo us l y f or ge d i mpa s s es t hat pr e ve nt e dt he di s pl ac ed peopl e f r om c hal l engi ng t he s oc i o-pol i t i ca l hegemony and f o rc i ng change t ha t woul dr es ul t i n c ons c i ous nes s of a uni f i ed peo pl e. " T hedeat h- k nel l f or bec om ng c ons c i o us was pr e c i s e l y t heconsc i ousness t ha t t he r e wer e no peopl e , but a l wayssever a l peopl es . . . who r emai ned t o be un i t ed. " 22 I n" Mal edi c t i on" Ham l t on di d not t el l a wor k er ' s s t or ybut h er i nt er pr et at i on of l abor er s ' ex per i enc eswor k i ng i n t he t ex t i l e m l l s onc e l oc at ed i n SoHo,t her eby s he f abr i c at ed a c ol l ec t i v e nar r at i v e.

P ol i t i c a l c i ne ma i nvoked c o l l ec t i ve me mo r y as amembr ane t hat enabl ed pass age bet ween t he publ i c l ym s s i ng pe opl e and t he pr i v at e l y abs e nt I . Del euz e,who c i t ed Kaf k a' s a nal y s i s o f t he r ol e of t he aut hori n m nor l i t er at ur e t o s ubs t ant i at e hi s ar gument ,c l a i med t hat t he f i l mmaker i n moder n pol i t i ca l dr ama

22 Ibid., p. 220. It could be an interesting exercise to consider the ideas of FredricJameson as they relate to Deleuze's argument. Jameson noted that by the sixties mostthird world colonized "natives" had been identified as human beings, as wereminorities, marginals, and women within the first world each of whom could becategorized as a new collective "subject of history" which would enable thematizedreadings of the situation(s)the group representing the individual.

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f unc t i oned as a c at al y s t t hat br ought t oget herc ol l ec t i ve c ondi t i ons t hr ough s t or y- t el l i ng. 23 I n t hi sway t he aut hor and f i l mmaker , and i n t he case of t hi se s s ay e xt e nde d t o i nc l ude t he a r t i s t , e ac h e xi s t e d asa s t or y - t el l er who pr ec ar i ous l y negot i at ed notc r eat i ng f i c t i on, whi c h woul d be t he aut hor ' s p r i v at es t or y, nor s er v i ng as an et hnol ogi s t . Ham l t ons i t uat ed her s el f as t he s t or yt el l er of t he f or got t en,poor wor k i ng t ext i l e l abor s f r o m t he l as t c ent ur y." St or y - t el l i ng. . . [ f unc t i oned as ] a s peec h- ac t t hr oughwhi c h t he c ha r a c t e r c o nt i nual l y c r o s s e[ d] t he bo unda r ywhi c h wo ul d s e par a t e hi s pr i vat e bus i ne s s f r ompol i t i c s , and whi c h i t s el f pr oduc e[ d] c ol l ec t i ve

ut t er anc es . " The aut hor / f i l mmak er / ar t i s t c r eat edt r a nc e s t ha t a l l o we d t he c ha r a c t e r t o s l i p be t we en t he" i deol ogy of t he c ol oni z er , t he my t hs o f t he c ol oni z edand di s c o ur s e of t he i nt el l ec t ual . The aut hor p ut s t hepar t i es i nt o t r anc es i n or der t o c ont r i but e t o t hei nv ent i on of h i s peo pl e who, al one, c ons t i t ut e t h ewhol e [ ensembl e] . " 24 I n " Mal edi c t i on" Ham l t on r e vi vedt he wor k er s ' s t or y and s i t uat ed v i s i t o r s as an

23Deleuze, p. 222.24 Deleuze, p. 223.

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obs e r v i ng and l i s t eni ng audi enc e, who i n- t ur npr e s uma bl y c a r ed e no ugh t o r ef l ec t on t he nar r a t i ve oft he i ns t al l at i on and i t s s ubt ex t . I t s eems t hatDe l euz e' s c o nc ept of s t or y - t el l i ng i s not b as e d on anat t empt t o cr eat e a consensus among t he mul t i p l enar r a t i ves t ha t make- up t he ensembl e , but a met hod ,and i n mo de r n po l i t i c a l c i nema a c ha r a c t e r , whi c hmaneuver ed among t he het er omor phous l anguage gamest hat c ons t i t ut e pa r a l o gy , as pos i t ed by L y ot a r d . 25Ham l t on po s i t i o ned he r s e l f anal ogous t o t he c har ac t eri n moder n pol i t i ca l c i nema t ha t oper a t ed among t hemul t i - f ac et ed nar r at i ves of l abor er s ' hi s t or i es ands pec t a t o r s .

Ham l t o n pos i t i o ne d her s e l f and s pec t at or s aswi t ne s s es t o t hes e l abor er s ' ex per i enc es : Ham l t on ast he ar t i s t r es e ar c her who unv ei l ed t hei r pl i ght ands pec t at or s as obs er v er s t o her t el l i ng of t hei r s t or y.Dor i Laub expl a i ned i n h i s essay "T r ut h and Tes t i mony :The Pr ocess and t he S t r ugg l e " " wi t ness i ng" as aconcept and pr ax i s . He wor ked wi t h Ho l ocaus t su r v i vor st o dev el op hi s a r g ume nt and i dent i f i ed t hr ee l ev el s o f

25 Lyotard, pp. 65-66.

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wi t nes s es : s ur vi vor s , l i s t ener s , and obs er ver s .Sur v i vor s who wi t ne s s e d t he Ho l o ca us t pa r t i c i pa t e d i na di a l ogi c al pr o ce s s t o ex pl or e t hei r wo r l d des t r o yedby i mpr i s o nment and t o r ec onc i l e i t wi t h t hei r c ur r entc i r c ums t a nc e s . 26 S ur v i vor s gave t e s t i mo ni e s about t hei rex per i enc es a nd t hr ough t h e pr o ces s of t es t i f y i ng,wi t ness ed t hei r own l osses caused by t he Ho l ocaus t .W t ne s s i ng nec es s i t a t e d t hey r epeat t hei r ex per i enc eswh i ch c r eat ed yet ano t her separ a t i on and l o ss , t he endof wi t nes s i ng. Nonet hel es s , t hr ough t hei rt es t i moni al s , s ur v i v or s r eenac t ed ev ent s i n a way t hatenabl ed t hem a c er t ai n r epos s e s s i on of pa s tex per i enc es . By r ec l ai m ng t hes e ev ent s , s ur v i v or s

r ea l i z e d t hat t her e wo ul d ne ver b e an i nt e gr a t i o n ofl i f e bef or e and af t er t he Hol oc aus t . L i v i ng i n t hepr es ent meant " l i vi ng wi t h an unf ul f i l l ed hope, " butaf t er wi t nes s i ng one' s e xper i enc es , i t mea nt no l ongerbei ng a l one: someone hear d your s t or y .

26 Dori Laub, "Truth and Testimony: The Process and the Struggle," in Trauma:Exploration in Memory. Edited with an Introduction by Cathy Caruth. Baltimore andLondon: The Johns Hopkins University, p. 74.

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A " wi t nes s , " h owev er , i s a wi t nes s t o t he t r ut h ofan event t hat happened. 27 Yet , Laub a r gued t hat t heHo l ocaus t pr oduced no wi t ness . The Naz i s a t t empt ed toe xt e r m na t e phys i c a l wi t nes s e s o f t he c r i me and t he" i nc o mpr e he ns i bl e and de c ept i ve ps yc hol o gi c a ls t r uc t ur e of t he ev ent pr ec l ude d i t s own wi t nes s i ng,even by i t s vi c t i ms . " 28 Whi l e i mpr i s oned, s ur v i v or sc oul d not ps yc hol o gi c a l l y r e mo ve t he ms e l ves f r om t heoppr ess i ve env i r onment o f t he camps t o p r ov i de ani nde pe nde nt pe r s p ec t i ve. The r ea l i t y c r ea t e d by t heHo l ocaust was a wor l d i n whi ch t he concept of an" o t her " di d not ex i s t . 29 Addr e s s c eas e d: a pr i s o ne rcoul d no t say "Thou" and ant i c i pa t e bei ng hear d o rr e c ei ve a r e s po ns e . The pr i s o ne r c oul d not ber ec ogni z ed as a s ubj ec t . Thi s l ac k of s ubj ec t i vi t ypr ev ent e d pr i s o ne r s f r om be i ng abl e t o wi t nes s and t obe wi t nes s e s t o t he ms e l ves .

L i k ewi s e, t he s t or y of t he di s enf r anc hi s ed t ex t i l ewor k er s por t r ayed i n Ham l t on' s i ns t al l at i on" Ma l edi c t i on" di d not pr oduc e any wi t nes s e s . Thi s i s

27 Laub, p. 65.28 Ibid., p. 65.29 Ibid., p. 66.

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not mer el y t he r es ul t of t he dur at i on of t i me, buta l so d i sempower ment . The i mm gr ant , m gr ant , and l owerc l a s s l a bor e r s wo r ke d i n o ppr e s s i ve s we at s hops i nwhi c h t hey per f o r med r epet i t i v e t as k s t hat c ont r i but edt o t he pr o duc t i o n of goods . The r eal i t y of t hes weat s hops ' wor k i ng env i r onment s , i n t hi s way s i m l art o Hol o caus t s ur v i v or s ' ex per i enc es , pr e ve nt e d t hec onc e pt of " o t her . " T he s e l a bo r e r s we r ei nt e r c hange abl e muc h l i ke a s s embl y l i ne pa r t s . T her ewa s anot her l abor er , but not an " o t her " l abor er .Subj ec t i v i t y di d not e xi s t and t hi s pr e ve nt e d t hel abor er s ' abi l i t i es t o be t hei r own wi t nes s es .

Laub not ed t ha t Ho l ocaus t p r i soner s a t t empt ed t owi t ness t he i r own i mpr i sonment . They wr o t e di a r i es andbur i e d t hem i n t he gr o und i n a t t e mpt s t o wi t nes s t het r ut h of t hei r e x per i e nc es . Thes e ef f or t s wer eun i f o r m y do omed t o f ai l be c aus e pr i s o ne r s we r e una bl et o achi eve an o t her ness t ha t coul d i magi ne,unde r s t a nd, and s har e t he ma gni t ude of t he i r r e al i t y . 30Laub sugges t ed t ha t t hese wr i t i ngs wer e no ti mme di a t e l y us e f ul be c aus e t hey di d not c o nt r i but e t o

30 Laub, p. 69.

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a publ i c di s c o ur s e about t he t r ut h of t he Hol oc aus t .The a t r o c i t i e s t he n c oul d pr o c ee d wi t hou t any wi t ne s swho coul d de t e r m nedl y i nf l uence event s or documentt r ut h. As s u ch, an ev ent wi t hout wi t ne s s es t o i t sr eal i t y ef f ec t i vel y di d not exi s t . 31 But t he bur i e dwr i t i ngs , s ec r e t pi c t ur es , and es c apees ' s t or i esc r ea t ed an i nf o r ma l di s c o ur s e , or an unc o ns c i o uswi t ness i ng of t he Ho l ocaus t . The r upt ur e be t ween t hei nf or mal di s c o ur s e t h at s eem ngl y f unc t i oned i n apr i v at e ma nne r and t he l at er r et r os pec t i v e t es t i moni esc r e at ed an hi s t or i c al gap i n c ol l ec t i v e wi t nes s i ng. 32The l ag be t we en t he pr i vat e s t o r y t e l l i ng and t her ec or di ng of t he s ur vi vor s ' t es t i moni es t hat

c ont r i but e d t o t he f or mat i on of a publ i c di s c o ur s e di dnot nega t e t he pr i ma r y r e c or di ngs . The di s p ar i t y oft i me under sco r ed t he " human cogni t i ve capac i t y t oper c ei v e and t o as s i m l at e t he t ot al i t y of what wasr eal l y happeni ng at t he t i me. " 33

Ha m l t o n r e s ea r c hed a r o und t he hi s t o r y of t het ex t i l e i ndus t r y at t he t ur n of t he t went i et h c ent ur y

31 Laub, p. 68.32 Ibid., p. 69.33 Laub., p. 69.

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and s t o r i es about l abo r e r s who wor ked i n t hesef ac t or i es . Thr ough t h i s pr oc es s , Ham l t on enha nc ed heri nt ui t i ve r es pons es t o t he gal l er y' s s i t e, l oc at ed i nwhat was once an i ndust r i a l compl ex and i n t h i s ways he s i t uat ed " Mal edi c t i on" wi t hi n what L aub i de nt i f i edas t he " h i s t or i c al gap i n c ol l ec t i v e memo r y . "Ham l t on' s r es ear c h pr oduc ed an i nf or mal di s c o ur s et hat f unc t i oned pr i v at el y f or her s el f as par t of herc r e at i v e pr oc es s . The ex hi bi t i on " Mal edi c t i on" c r eat eda s l i ppage be t ween her pr i va t e r esea rch and t he publ i cv i s u al i z a t i o n of h er i deas and wor k . The publ i ci ns t al l at i on di d not i nc l ude t he nar r at i v es of f or merm l l wor k er s , but i t di d mak e t hei r s t r uggl es r el ev ant

t o he r c ont empor a r y audi ence . I t seems Ham l t ondes i r ed t o enc our age s pec t at or s ' i n- t ur n t o t hi nkabout c ur r ent unf ai r l abor p r a c t i c es ; s he s i t uat ed t hepol i t i c al c ont ent of " Mal edi c t i on" i n poet i c t e r ms sot hat i t s l i pped j us t b eyond t he ephe mer a l bo unda r i e sof agi t p r op and consequent l y mer e l y suggest ed ar el at i ons hi p be t we en hi s t o r i c al and c ont empor ar y l abori s s ues . Ham l t on t ol d a s t or y t h at n ev er ma ni f e s t e di nt o a c o nt e mpo r a r y f a bl e.

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Laub cont i nued h i s a r gument wi t h f ur t her comment son pr i s o ner s ' a t t empt s t o wi t nes s t hei r e xper i e nc es .Thi s anal y s i s t hen l ends i t s el f t o enhanc i ng mydi s c us s i on of " Mal edi c t i on" and t he l abor er s ' s t or i esas wel l as Ha m l t on' s r ol e as a wi t nes s . L aub bel i e ve dwi t ne s s i ng one ' s e xpe r i e nc e s dur i ng t he Ho l o c aus t was" a c eas el es s s t r uggl e. " 34 Sur v i vor s ne ede d t o s u r v i vet he Hol oc aus t t o t el l t hei r s t or i es ; i n t i me t heyneeded t o t el l t hei r s t or i es i n or der t o s ur v i ve. L aubcomment ed t hat t hey must know t hei r " bur i ed t r ut h , "uni mpeded by memor i es o f t he pas t , i n o r de r t o l i vet hei r l i ves . 35 Unf or t unat el y , s ome s ur v i v or s ' des i r e t ot el l t hei r s t or i es ov er whel med t hei r l i v es . They l i vedwi t h t he ne ed t o s har e t hei r e xpe r i e nc e s , but we r ehampe r e d by t hei r i nabi l i t y t o do so. Thes e s ur v i v or sne ve r we r e abl e t o f o r mul a t e t hei r e xpe r i e nc e s i n" t hought , memor y, and speech. " They never f ound enoughwor ds or t he r i ght wor ds and enough t i me or t he r i ghtt i me, nor e nough l i s t eni ng or t he r i ght l i s t ener t o bewi t ness es t o t hemse l ves . 36 By not s har i ng t hei r

34 Ibid., p. 61.35 Laub, p. 63.36 Ibid., pp. 64-65.

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exper i ences , t he memor i es of t hem per pet uat ed andc r eat ed a t y r a nny t hat i nvaded s ur v i vor s ' dai l y l i ves .The c ont i nual i nt er nal r et el l i ng and c ons e quent l yr el i v i ng of t hei r Hol oc aus t ex per i enc es i n t hei runc o ns c i o us me mo r y di s t o r t e d t he s e s ur v i vor s 'r ec ol l e ct i ons , s ome t o t he po i nt t hat t hey ques t i onedt he t r ut h of t hei r own e xpe r i e nc e s . 37 Sur v i vor s whos t r uggl e d wi t h di s t o r t e d me mo r i e s l i ved l i ves f oundedi n t hi s s t r uggl e. Some de vel o ped s e l f - pe r c e pt i o nsmar r ed by t hei r i nt er nal c onf l i c t s . Thi s pr ev ent edt hem f r om bei ng abl e t o r el at e t o ot her peopl e ora ut hent i c al l y wi t nes s t hei r own e xper i e nc es d ur i ng t h eHol oc aus t . Subj ec t i v i t y cont i nue d t o el ude t hes es ur v i vor s .

Sur v i vor s nee ded t o f i nd a wa y t o a r t i c ul a t e ands har e t hei r s t or i es , ac c or di ng t o L aub. 38 L i s t ener st ak e on t he r es pons i bi l i t y of wi t ne s s i ng t he ev ent st hat t he nar r at or pr e vi o us l y bor e al one. Ther el a t i o ns h i p es t abl i s hed be t wee n t he s ur v i v or andl i s t ener c r eat ed a c onc ept ual s pac e t hat bot h pa r t i e ss har ed r es pons i bi l i t y f or c r eat i ng, and t hi s enabl ed

37 Ibid., p. 64.38 Laub, p. 63.

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t he r el at i o ns h i p be t wee n t he na r r at or and l i s t ener t oc r e at e " s o me t hi ng l i ke a r e po s s e s s i o n of t he ac t o fwi t ne s s i ng. " Thr ough t he pr oc es s of g i v i ng at es t i mony i n t hi s env i r onme nt , t he s ur v i v orr ec ons t i t ut ed t he i nt er nal " t hou. " 39 The sur v i vor wase mpower e d t o r ec l ai m t he po s i t i on of b ei ng an i nt er nalwi t nes s t o hi s / her own l i f e s t or y. Thi s i nt er nalwi t ness suppl ant ed the p r i soner who coul d no t be awi t nes s i n hi s / her r eal l i f e. 40

The di s j unc t u r e b et we en t he hi s t o r i c a l mo me nt oft he l abor er s ' e xper i enc es a nd Ham l t o n' s r es e ar c h andr es ul t i ng ex hi bi t i on " Mal edi c t i on" pr ev ent ed t hewor k er s f r o m ever t el l i ng t hei r s t or i es andc ons equent l y r e c ov er i ng t hei r i nt er nal " t hou. " Yet ,t he s c enar i o Ham l t on f abr i c at ed t hr ough her c r eat i v ep r ocess se t - up an ana l ogous moment f or he r t o s i t ua t eher s el f as a wi t nes s t o t he l abor er s ' s t or y ( i es ) . Shewi t nes s e d t he pl i gh t o f t hes e f or got t e n wo r ker s whoc oul d no l onge r s peak f or t he ms e l ves . Thus , Ha m l t o ni ndeed c r eat ed a concept ua l space , but i n he ri ns t al l at i on t he r es pons i bi l i t y f or t he l abor er s '

39 Ibid., p. 70.4 0 Ibid., p. 71.

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na r r a t i ves was j oi nt l y s har e d be t we en her s e l f as t hel i s t ener and her audi enc e as s pec t at or s . Vi s i t or s t o" Ma l edi c t i on" wa l k ed t hr ough t h e mul t i - s e ns o r yi ns t al l at i on and obs er ved Ham l t on' s t el l i ng of t hewor k er s ' s t or i es . Thi s cont r i v ed r el at i ons hi p bet weens ubj ec t mat t er , ar t i s t , and i ns t a l l at i on f ur t herr emoved v i ewer s f r om t he sweat shop wor ke r s 'na r r a t i v es . Spe ct at or s wer e not obs e r v e r s of t hel abor er s ' s t or i es ; t hey wer e obs er v er s of Ham l t on' si nt er pr et at i on and pr es ent at i on of t hei r nar r at i ves .Ham l t on def i ned s pec t at or s as onl y obs e r v er s , t husal i enat i ng t hem f r om t he di s enf r anc hi s ed m l l wor ker s 'per s onal nar r at i v es . One wonder s i f t hi s al i enat i on

enabl ed s pec t at or s t o f or go t ak i ng a c ol l ec t i v e s oc i alr es pons i bi l i t y f or t hes e hi s t or i c wor k er s ' pl i ght s whoi n many ways r e f l ec t ed cont empor a r y l abo r e r s 'pr obl ems .

Ha m l t o n c r e at e d an e nv i r o nme nt t hat f ur t herenv el oped s pec t at or s i n her s ubs e quent i ns t al l at i on" T r o pos " f r om 1993- 94 at Di a Ce nt er f or t he Ar t s

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( I l l us t r at i on 3) . 41 She pour ed cement over t her enovat ed f ac t or y - t ur ned- ar t s pac e' s f l oor s t o bui l dt he undul at i ng gr ound f or t he i ns t al l at i on. Shec over e d t he r o l l i ng ce me nt f l oor wi t h bl a c k and bl o ndehor s ehai r ( r em ni s c ent of t he ear l y hor s e hai ri ndus t r y i n New Yor k ) t ha t c r eat ed a mo l t ed pat t e r nand r epl aced t he t r ans l ucent wi ndows wi t h t ext ur edgl as s . Vi s i t or s nav i gat ed t hi s r ol l i ng pas t ur e ofhor seha i r swat hed i n a de f used l i ght . The i r movement st r i gger ed an audi o of a man who at t empt ed t o speak.The wor ds gar b l ed t oget her r ender ed h i s speechuni nt e l l i gi bl e and e nha nc e d hi s di s e mbo di e d pr e s enc e.The unseen man' s ef f or t s t o communi cat e compl ement edt he ac t i v i t y of t he l one at t endant s i t t i ng at a des k ,l oc at ed t owa r d s t he c ent er of t he i ns t al l a t i on. The" t e nder " ( at t endant ) r ead a bo ok and i n- t ur n bu r n t i tl i ne by l i ne as s he r ead i t : t he et her eal v oi c e t r i edt o communi ca t e wh i l e t he r eader e r ased wr i t t encommuni cat i on.

Ham l t on s i t uat ed vi s i t or s t o her i ns t a l l at i on asv i ewer s who obser ved t he wor k and par t i c i pant s whose

41To view an image of this work, please visit:http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/hamilton/card3.html

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bo di es c a t al y z ed t h e dev i c e t h at t r i gger ed pr e-r ecor ded audi o . She engaged r ecept i on t o her wor k i n amanner ana l ogous t o t he i n t e r pl ay of ac t o r s ands pec t at or s i n epi c t heat er , whi c h i nt ended f or t hem t oi nt er ac t , ac c or di ng t o Wal t er Benj am n i n hi s es s ay" What i s Epi c T he at e r . " 42 I n an a t t empt t o f ur t here r adi ca t e t he abyss be t ween ac t o r s and audi ence , t hes t age i n epi c t heat er f unc t i oned as t heat er i n t her ound, s i t uat ed on a dai s , a r ai s ed pl at f or m Thi sar r angement compl ement ed an act i ng s t y l e i n whi ch t hea c t o r r e ve al e d bo t h hi m/ he r s e l f and t he c ha r a c t e rbei ng por t r ayed at t he same t i me. The act or a t t empt edt o a l l ow bot h t o appear wi t hout one occ l udi ng t heot her . Thi s nec es s i t at e d de t a c hme nt f r om bot h r ol es .Be nj am n c i t ed t wo ex ampl es t o hel p c l ar i f y t hi spo i nt . F i r s t , an ex i l ed Ge r man ac t or c as t i n t he par tof a SS so l di e r and member of t he Peopl e ' s Cour t ,pr esumabl y c oul d not empl oy empat hy as an act i ngmet hod f or h i s r o l e. Second, t he Ger man ac t o r ' s

42 Walter Benjamin. "What is Epic Theater?," inIlluminations: Essays andReflections. Edited and with an introduction by Hanna h Arendt. Translated by HarryZohn. New York: Shocken Books, 1968, p. 152.

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f eel i ngs woul d be v as t l y di f f er ent f r om t hos e of ade vo t e d f am l y ma n c as t as Don J uan i n Mo l i e r e ' s p l a y.

Si m l ar t o Ber t ol t Br ec ht ' s pl ays , Ham l t onwe l c o me d v i e we r s t o her " T r o pos " i ns t a l l a t i o n byempl oy i ng t he gal l er y s pac e i t s el f as a s t age f orc r e at i ve i nt er ac t i on bet ween t he ar t i s t ( or ar t i s tr epr es e nt at i v e) and s pec t at or s . The c onf i nes of t hegal l er y f unc t i oned as a s t r uc t ur al el ement , l i ke apl o t i n an e pi c pl a y, whi c h gui de d r e s po ns e s , whi l evi s i t or s ' ac t i ons , l i ke ac t o r s i mpr ovi s i ng a s cene,m m c k ed an unf o l di ng of t he s t or y . Vi e we r se xpe r i e nc ed t h e i ns t al l at i on as t h ey c r o s s ed t hega l l e r y t h r esho l d and ambl ed t h r ough t he shaghor s e hai r c ar pet , not by s t andi ng o ut s i de i t s c onf i nesl ook i ng i n as i f i t wer e a t wo- di me ns i onal s pac e.

The aud i ence i n epi c t heat er appear ed as ac ol l ec t i v e t hat , as suc h, f el t c o mpel l ed t o r eac tt o ge t he r i n a pr o mpt , yet r el a xe d ma nner . Be nj a m n, i nhi s anal y s i s of Br ec ht ' s wr i t i ngs , c l ai med t hat t heaudi ence of epi c t heat e r m ght be under s t ood as ani nt er es t gr oup who wer e i nt el l ec t ual l y i nc l i ned and

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" [ di d] not t hi nk wi t hout r eas on. " 43 Epi c t heat ere nga ge d t he s e a udi e nc e s by pr e s ent i ng a r t i s t i cma t e r i a l i n an a c c es s i bl e ma nne r t hat t hey c o ul df ol l o w and r e l a t e t o t hei r own l i ved e xpe r i e nc e s a ndi deal l y i n- t ur n i nt egr at e t he t hemes of t he pl ay i nt ot hei r da y- t o- da y l i v es . I t s eemed al mos t c ont r a di c t or yt o c r e at e c ompel l i ng i nt el l ec t u al and ar t i s t i cpr o duc t i o ns t ha t c hal l e nge d t he bo unda r i e s of t heav ant - gar de i n i t s pos i t i oni ng of t he audi enc e whi l es t i l l s t r i v i ng t o pr oduc e i nt el l i gent and ac ces s i bl ena r r a t i ves . Ne ve r t hel e s s , Br e cht de pe nde d on t hes es t r uc t ur al gaps t o c ul t i v at e a r el at i ons hi p wi t h t hema s s e s t hr o ugh an i nt e r e s t i n t he t he at e r t ha t d i d not

r equi r e di r ec t c ul t ur al or pol i t i c al i nv ol vement . Thei nt ent i onal i t y of n ot r equi r i ng t he audi enc e' se mo t i o na l i nvol veme nt wi t h t he c ha r a c t e r s p os i t i o ne dt hem t o r el at e t o t he pl ot i n an i nt el l ec t ual manner ,wh i c h e nga ge d t he m wi t h i t s s ubj ec t ma t t e r a nd i de al l ys pur r ed t hem t o ma ke r eal s o ci al c ha nge .

An " i nt e r e s t e d" a udi e nc e i s pr o duc ed t hr o ught r adi t i onal mec hani s ms of pl ot , nar r at i v e, and ac t or s .

43 Ibid, p. 148.

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The pl ot of epi c t heat er i s uns ens at i onal , t ypi c al ,and o f t ent i mes an o l d s t o r y t ha t t he audi ence a l r eadyknows . The us e of hi s t o r i c a l s ubj ec t ma t t e r hel pe d t odel i m t s e ns a t i on, but t hi s di d not mea n t hat t hecont ent was mundane. Benj am n c i t ed Br echt ' s p l ayabout Gal i l eo, whi c h po r t r a yed hi s s t r uggl es t oover come i gnor ance and t o r t u r e i n o r de r t o smuggl e hi sr e sear c h out of I t al y, t o i l l us t r at e hi s poi nt . 44

The audi e nc e ' s p ar t i c i pa t o r y e nga ge me nt wi t h" T r o pos " nec es s a r i l y s i t uat ed v i ewer s as a c ol l ec t i v e,ana l ogous t o t he audi ence of epi c t hea t e r , one assumesmo s t l i kel y i nt e r e s t e d i n c o nt e mpo r a r y ar t g i ven t her eput at i on and ex hi bi t i o n hi s t or y of t he Di a Cent erf or t he Ar t s . Ham l t on hei ght ened vi s i t or s 'e xpe r i e nc e s o f t he wo r k by f or c i ng t hem t o wa l k on ar ol l i ng f l oor wi t h a s of t v i s c er al t ext ur e of bl ondand bl a c k hor s e ha i r j ux t a po s ed t o pul s a t e and f ur t herdi s o r i ent ed t hem She enhanc ed v i s i t or s ' pe r c e i v edal i enat i on by f r os t i ng t he wi ndows and l i m t i ng t hei rv i e ws . The i nt a ngi bl e qua l i t y of t he mumbl i ng voi c ef ur t her e nvel o pe d v i e we r s , whi l e t he s c r a pi ng s o unds

44 Brecht revised the en ding of the play twice. In these subsequent versions, hevilified Galileo 's actions both intellectually and socially.

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of t he t ender b ur n i ng t he t ex t a nd t he r e s ul t i ng s mel lof t he bu r n t pa ge s c r ea t e d mo r e d i s a f f e c t i o n. Muc h asBr ec ht unde r s t o od hi s a udi enc e' s r ec ept i on t o epi ct heat er ; i t s eemed Ham l t on di d not ant i c i pat e t hather v i ewer s woul d nec es s a r i l y be c ul t ur al l y orpol i t i c al l y engaged wi t h t he i ns t al l at i on. Sheempl oyed l ayer s of sensor y dev i ces t o p r oduce anenv i r onment t hat f os t er ed a f eel i ng of al i enat i on.Whet he r s pec t at or s t h en i nt egr a t e d t hes e s ens i t i v i t i esi nt o t hei r dai l y l i ves i s seem ngl y an unquant i f i abl eex pec t at i on.

The her o o f ep i c t heat er p l ays embod i ed t heac c ept abl e and s hunned c har ac t er i s t i c s o f s oc i et y .Br e c ht pr e s ent e d bo t h t he " her o " and " a nt i - her o " a sone c ha r a c t e r . The s l i ppage be t we en t he he r o / a nt i - her oas one per s on f ac i l i t at ed a l ogi c al s i t uat i on i n whi c ht o el i m nat e t he need f or c at har s i s i n Br ec ht ' s p l ays .He di d no t des i r e t he audi ence t o empat h i ze wi t h t hec har a ct e r , but t o pr o duc e a r e ac t i o n of a s t o ni s hme ntat t he c o ndi t i o ns pr e s en t e d on s t age . Thi sbewi l der ment was enhanced by t he concept o f d i s j o i nedt i me i n e pi c t he at e r . T he c r e at i o n of s us pens e t hr o ugh

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i ndi v i dual ev ent s c o ul d po r t r ay vas t e xpans e s ordur at i o ns of t i me t hat di d not nec es s a r i l y bui l d t o anout come, but i ns t ead r ema i ned as i magi nar y v i gnet t es .

Ham l t on' s her o was t he di sembodi ed vo i ce andr e pr e s ent e d t he pr e s enc e of t he a bj ec t i n " T r o po s . "The v oi c es g ar bl ed nar r a t i v e ex i s t ed i n t he v oi dbe t we en " her o" a nd " a nt i - he r o . " Soc i a l mo r e s t a ughtspec t a t o r s t o empat h i ze wi t h , yet shun t hedi s e nf r a nc hi s e d - t o pi t y wi t h a gl anc e but nota ck nowl e dge wi t h a l ook . Yet , t he v oi c e i n Ha m l t on' swor k c r eat ed a concept ual space i n wh i ch i t f o rged as l i ght l y of f - c ent er ed s ubj ec t i v i t y. The v oi c e c oul d behear d, but t he speaker never seen and as suchs ubj ec t i v i t y c oul d not f or mal l y ex i s t b et we en t hespeaker and v i s i t o r s . Spec t a t o r s moved t h r ough t hei ns t al l a t i on and t r i gger ed a dev i c e t h at ani mat ed t h evoi c e , t hus ma ki ng hi s pr e s enc e over t he pe r i o d oft hei r ex pl or at i on s por adi c and unpr edi c t abl e. Thi sunpr edi c t abi l i t y s t a r t l ed and s ur pr i s ed vi ewer s ; i ti nt er r upt ed t he s e r e ni t y of t he c ar ef r ee e nv i r o nment ,a nd t hus t he unwi t t i ng v i s i t o r i na dver t e nt l y e mpo we r e dt he abj ec t v oi c e.

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Benj am n ar gue d t hat " i nt er r upt i on" was a s t r uc t ur i ngde vi c e t ha t s upe r s e de d t he c onf i ne s of ar t :e l uc i da t i o n of s hoc k i ng c ondi t i ons oc c ur r ed t h r oughi nt er r upt i ons of h appeni ngs i n dai l y l i f e, muc h l i ket he di s e mbo di e d v oi c e i n Ha m l t on' s " T r opos . " 45Benj am n c i t ed t he use of quo t a t i ons as an exampl e ofi nt er r upt i on i n epi c t h eat er - - t o quot e a t ex ti nt er r upt s i t s c ont ex t . Epi c t heat er was ba s ed oni nt er r upt i on and t her ef or e was quot abl e. I nt er r upt i onswer e ac hi ev ed t h r ough ges t ur es , r e pet i t i o n ofdi a l o gue , a nd an i nt e gr a t ed pr e s en t a t i o n of t he s e t woef f or t s . Ac t i on i n epi c t h eat er mov ed i n s pur t s ,s i m l ar t o mont age ef f ec t s i n f i l ms . 46 P l ay wr i ght se mpl o ye d i nt e r r upt i o ns a nd na r r a t i ve c o nvent i o ns a l ongwi t h s ongs , c apt i ons , and ac t i ons t o he l p def i nes i t uat i ons a nd pac e pl ay s ' c adenc es . L i k ewi s e , t heac t o r de pl o ye d c o mpor t me nt , i nt o na t i o n, and f ac i ale xpr e s s i o ns a s f or ms of g es t ur e s t o e xpr e s s s o c i ala t t i t udes a nd f ur t her el uc i dat e t he pl o t . The mor e t hea c t i o n i n a pl a y i nt e r r upt e d an a ct o r , t he mo r eges t ur e s r es ul t ed. No net he l es s , t he ac t or was r equi r ed

45 Benjamin, p. 151.4 6 Benjamin, p. 153-154.

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t o s pac e hi s ges t ur e s , s i m l ar t o t he way a t y pewr i t erpr oduced spaced t ype, p r esumabl y i n o r der f or bot h t heac t o r and audi ence to acknowl edge t he s i gn i f i cance of" g es t ur e" as a dev i c e.

The quo t i ng of ge s t ur e s i n epi c t hea t er wasachi eved subt l y . Benj am n ment i oned when t he ac t r essi n Happy Ending sang a song at t he sa i l o r ' s t ave r n andt hen quot ed t he song and act ed out t he gest ur es o ft hi s ev ent i n f r ont of t he Sal v at i on Ar my ' s c o unc i l asan exampl e. 47 He i mpl i ed t hat " i nt er r upt i ons " al t er ednar r at i v es and as a r es ul t pos i t i oned " s u s pens e " n otj us t as a c har ac t er i s t i c of p l ot b ut al s o as a dev i c e.Raman Se l dan, Pet er W ddowson, and Pet er Br ookere xpl a i ne d " de vi c e " as a t er m empl o ye d i n Rus s i a nF or mal i s m t hat wr i t er s us ed t o def am l i ar i s e t hehabi t ual and mundane, t o emphasi ze t he event andenc our age s pec t at or s ' a t t ent i on. 48 They c l a i med t hat" def am l i ai r i s at i on" and " l ayi ng bar e" t he devi c e, t he

47 Be njam in, p. 151.48 Raman Selden, Peter Widdowson, and Peter Brooker, "Russian Formalism," in Ae ders Guide to Contemporary Literary Theory. London and New York: PrenticeHall, 1997, pp. 29-30.

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ac t of ma ki ng t he de vi c e obv i o us i n t he s c r i pt and t ot he audi enc e, i nf l uenc ed Br e cht . 49

I n epi c t heat er t he sk i l l f ul us e of quot i ngges t ur es t o f ur t her t he na r r at i v e pl ay ed wi t h t he i deaof " s us pe ns e " and a l s o r e - s i t ua t e d t he phys i c a l andps y chol ogi c al c onc ept of t i me and i nt er - r el at i ons hi pwi t h s pac e as dyna m c i n epi c t he at e r . The us e ofges t ur es al t er ed t he nar r at i v es not b y f l as hba ck s orr ec ol l ec t i ons t hat c o ul d be i nt er pr et ed t hr ough t hephenomenol ogi cal concept of memor y and t i me, but ar e c ont e xt ua l i z a t i o n of a s o ng and/ or p er f o r ma nc e i nt he s pec i ous pr e s en t . De s pi t e t he ac t o f quo t i ng t heac t , t he r e - pr es e nt at i on was i mpor t ant f or t hena r r a t i ve de ve l o pme nt as i t wa s t ak i ng pl a c e.

The def am l i ar i z i ng ges t ur e t hat c r eat edi nt er r upt i ons i n Ha m l t on' s " Tr opos " t ended t o be v er ysubt l e. The t ender r ead a book and t hen bur ned eachl i ne af t er s he r ead i t ; t hi s f unc t i oned as t hedef am l i ar i z i ng ges t ur e. She s at at a des k and r e ad abook as i f i n s t udy hal l , but r at her t han t ak i ngnot es , she er ased t he wor ds and as a r esu l t r ender ed

49 Ibid., p. 34.

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t he na r r a t i ve i n c ompr e he ns i bl e . Her r e pe at ed ge s t ur e sof bur n i ng t he t ext l i ne by l i ne comp l ement ed t hei nt er m t t ent and i nc ompr e hens i bl e audi o. Theuni nt e l l i gi bl e s pok en na r r at i v e c oupl ed by t he r eadere r a s i ng wr i t t e n na r r a t i ve pr o duc ed an unea s i

theories of spectatorship in contemporary spatial art

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