Reading - 3 & 4 May 2009

This is my very first attempt. I went to the house of a Spanish friend who lives in Reading (UK). We cooked at his home the 3rd at night, I slept there one night and I left the day after.

(Cooking)

The kitchen was new and big, with a view to a small garden. We started by putting some pieces of chicken in the oven and then I cleaned and cut some potatoes. I fried them while Ion boiled some pasta. After having fried the potatoes and boiled the pasta he suggested putting the pasta in the pan with the fried oil (this is actually an old fashion way to cook pasta in Greece). I didn't really like the idea (too much cholesterol!) but I didn't feel comfortable to say no, so he went on trying it. Unfortunately, he didn't succeed because by the time he placed the pan with the fried oil on the gas-ring it flamed up! We were shocked and for some seconds we were just standing there and looking at it! We stopped the fire by covering the pan with a top. We opened all the windows but was already late so the fire-alarm started ringing. Ion, being new in this house (just his 2nd day he had moved in!) had no idea of how to turn off the fire-alarm but fortunately it automatically stopped before him calling his flatmate to ask about it. Later on, while I was cleaning the kitchen, and the cupboards from the black dust of the fire, I found out the the fan was not working anymore. I opened it to check and I saw this: (photo : melted fan)

(Eating)
Inspite of all this unexpeced experience we had a nice meal around the dinner table in the living room, with normally cooked pasta, chicken, potatoes, bread, bears to drink and chocolate brownies for dessert.

(Sleeping)
The house was very big, normally there live 3 people (Ion, and two more men). During that weekend his flatmates where not in the house. Jon had a bedroom on the second floor with a large double bed. I slept in the living room on the 1st floor on the sofa.

Photo: At night just before getting asleep.

The sofa was not very comfortable but it was ok.

Photo: In the morning 2 minutes before waking up.

By the morning I couldn't remember my dreams...

proposal (draft)

Outline of the topic
Being influenced by the works of Sophie Calle and Rirkrit Tiravanija I intent to investigate the notion of public and private through the actions of cooking, eating and sleeping. Calle with her work crosses private boundaries to explore the meanings which might be hidden there and exploits public spaces, investing them with a sense of intimacy. Tiravanija talking about his work has said ‘The situation is not about looking at art. It is about being in the space, participating to an activity. The nature of the visit has shifted to emphasize on the gallery as a space for social interaction. The transfer of such activities as cooking, eating or sleeping into the realm of the exhibition space put visitors into very intimate if unexpected contact; the displacement creates an acute awareness of the notion of public and private, the installations function like scientific experiments: the displacement becomes a tool and exposes the way scientific thought processes are constructed. The visitor becomes a participant in that experiment.’ (artist’s text in www.culturebase.net)

In connection to the works of the artists above what is important for my work is not what you see but what takes place between people, through different ways of interaction such as eating together around a dinner table or sleeping in the same room. Wanting to emphasise on the process rather than product of a performance I wish my work to unfold as I go through each stage of preparation and execution. Finally, I intent to carry out my performance research wherever I go in different cities around Europe as an attempt to blur and destroy the borders between life and art but also as an investigation on the differentiation of the limits between private and public spheres in different cultures.


Methodology
I intend to create different experiments based on my previous works on food and on sleeping. I will continue on my work on sleeping by inviting people to come and sleep in my house but also I will sleep in other people houses and in public spaces. My research on eating and cooking will be based on my current collaboration with Gemma Craddock on food performances in alternative spaces. In addition to this I will make a one week trip in 3 different countries in Europe during which I will create different environments based around food and sleep through which I will explore the areas that lay in between private and public spheres and I will encourage the interaction and communication between the participants.

On cooking and eating:
1) I will ask people in restaurants to let me eat with them in their table.
2) I will make one dinner in each country using traditional products from another country and I will invite my guests to cook with me.
3)I will cook with people in their place. For the documentation I will take videos of them while they are cooking focusing on their body movements rather than the food itself.

On sleeping:
1)I will sleep in other peoples’ bed entering by this way in their most intimate environment; I will share with them my dreams during that night as an exchange of intimacy. I will also ask them to give me something from their home and I will give them back something I have found in public places. For documentation I will take a photo of the different bedrooms with the two exchangeable objects and I will write down my dreams during that night.