studies on the universalism – 1. study. fail

‘Studies on the universalism’ is a study by the medium of performance about abuse, starving relationships and deals with performance as a living-universalism. The studies question universalism as a totality throughout time and space realized through n-relations/connections made by performance as a medium.

Study 1 is an image/symbolism/embodiment of a total failure. The performers live in this failure. They separate each other through the criteria of progress or failure. They show a homogeneous physical effort by staying in two poses and holding this position. On this level the performers experience the same challenges. On a second level a divergence exists depending on the different conditions of the performers. An external system decides if the performers can be heard or not in their moment of effort.

“Where the accident of birth has them thrown” (Friedrich Schiller), there they remain, tormented by environmental conditions. Who remains in their social lower position and underdeveloped place on earth, who grows up, who decides what about others, lives next to each other, zoning, as a delimitable structure? “Caesura of the continuum” (Michel Foucault) represents a failure of a universal nature.

Concept, Performance, Installation, Costume: Christi Knak Tschaikowskaja; Sound-Performance: Inu Jung; Animation: Phaidonas Gialis; Audiosystem and -scripting: Roman Jungblut; Performer: Richard Kaldenhoff, Kate Hattley, Mathilde Hawkins, Dani DaEun Kim, Mikkel Haynes, Biniam Graffe, Adalberto Jose, Williams Davids-Amosu, Youeb Dachraoui, Julian Quentin, Johanna Johnen, Lucas Caspar Woelfl, Ella Rose Kuehn, Isaac Espinoza Hidrobo; Foto: Claus Daniel Herrmann, Ruth Magers; Film: Camie Ruether.

hair objects, pure hair, 2018

installation with hair sculptures, based on the research on contemporary burning of women, 2018

transman (working title)

“transman” performance is upcoming soon. “transman” represents a positive future for gender matters, however reflects on the current state of gender problematic. Including the analysis of “Histoire de la sexualité, vol. 1 : La volonté de savoir” by Michel Foucault and actual documents of a transgender case the performance interacts with the audience and offers a platform for discourse and discussion.

ich sitze dir

gegenüber

in einem white cube

das was ich sehe

sind deine Augen

das was ich fühle

ist nichts

ich nehme nicht wahr

glaube ich kaum

dass es dich überhaupt gibt

es gibt dich

du sitzt mir gegenüber

dass ich dich nicht

wahrnehmen kann

sagt nichts darüber aus

dass es dich nicht gibt

du streifst mir

durch meine blonden Haare

eingezäumt

wartet der Bulldogge

auf mich

er wird gehalten

so wie ich

für ihn

wie für mich

sind die Grenzen erkennbar

lückenlos

versteifen sie unsere Manieren!

photos by

http://www.clausdanielherrmann.de/

Photo by David Morsi, Ebertplatz, Cologne

wake up hard skin a girl

In this cooperative cross-genre project between performance art and photography, the focus is on the free definition and determination of gender. Starting from no framework or threshold that divides a heteronormative society into ‘female’ or ‘male’, the performers see themselves as a gender of their own kind. As a liquid gender, the performers pose in a modern urban environment. They assimilate themselves into the environment with the awareness that their gender cannot be located socially, but is an indication and expression of existence through their own conscious perception. It is precisely in order to escape being pressed into a form that movements emerge that embrace forms and are fluid.
‘wake up hard skin a girl’ shows the necessity of reforming gender norms.

The pictures were selected in the context of the call for entries ‘Open Call Plakatwaende’ in the Passagen am Koelner Ebertplatz for Decade 2 in January. The images of the performers, who are read as non-heteronormative, and the allusion of the title to a gender undefined and gender equal society became the trigger of a double aggression on the part of the public. The posters were put up by the Stroeer company on 11.01.2021 and destroyed already on 15.01.2021, four days later. The title, the name of the artist as well as the body of the migrant performer were completely torn down. On 04.02.2021 the damaged posters were replaced by two new ones. The image of the Performer.in was again violently torn down one day later. These repeated acts of violence have a strong symbolic effect and demonstrate the intolerance, gender discrimination and racism still inherent in our society. The repeated, targeted attack can be distinguished from simple vandalism.

Credits

Performers

ISaac Espinoza Hidrobo, Lars Nichtvontrier

concept

Christi Knak Tschaikowskaja, Julian Quentin

performance und costume

Christi Knak Tschaikowskaja

photography

Julian Quentin